Love Sees More 3: Greyback's Pack
by SpoonyLupin
Summary: Remus has agreed to infiltrate Greyback's pack. That, however, proves much easier said than done. As the days pass and Remus spends more time with the animalistic werewolves, it becomes harder and harder for him to remember what it was like to live as a human.
1. Chapter 1: Infiltration

**Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including, but not limited to, Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros. Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.**

_Author's note: This partially follows the canon storyline of Remus going to live with the werewolves during 'Half-Blood Prince', but Sirius is alive here and Dumbledore doesn't die during the course of this either. Also, Greyback did not bite Remus in my stories._

**Love Sees More 3: Greyback's Pack**

Chapter 1 - Infiltration

"You don't have to go, you know," Sirius said, leaning against the doorway of Remus's bedroom at number twelve, Grimmauld Place. "You _are _allowed to say no."

Remus closed his eyes, leaning against one of the bedposts. He couldn't look at Sirius. "I can't _not _go. We desperately need the information, and there's no one else who _can _go. They certainly wouldn't allow a _human _in among them - that would be a dead give away."

"Like the fact that you're a known supporter of Albus and Harry isn't," Sirius reminded.

"Albus has a plan for that."

Sirius laughed, a sound somewhere between mocking and disbelief. "Of course he does." He stared at Remus, almost as if daring the other man to give him a proper explanation for why he would even consider this in the first place.

Sighing, Remus turned away from Sirius and sat down on the mattress, eyeing the faded carpet underneath his feet. "Albus feels certain that I can gain Greyback's trust by pretending to be fed up with the wizarding world. Everything I've done to fit in here hasn't worked, and I'm still as much of an outcast as I ever was. Nothing's changed for me here and I'm tired of fighting for rights - a life I'll clearly never have." Remus broke off and finally turned to look at Sirius. "That's what I have to make Greyback believe."

A long moment of silence passed, Sirius continuing to stare at Remus as if he had a screw loose. "Greyback isn't an idiot."

Remus's jaw clenched. "Are you saying I can't do it?"

"No." Sirius let out a breath of disbelief, taking several steps into the room. "I just mean that if Greyback suspects, even for a _second_, that you're trying to deceive him, he could _kill _you. All it would take is one slip up on your part, just one little inkling that you're not being honest with him…"

"Yes," Remus said tiredly, "I've thought about that, Padfoot." He sighed heavily, rubbing a hand over his face. "That's what the Order is all about. Taking chances and doing things that we may not get out of. It's never stopped us before."

"Moony…" Sirius said, but his mind had gone blank. He couldn't, for the life of him, come up with a reasonable explanation why Remus shouldn't go. He knew they needed the information, needed all the help they could get, but…

Sirius sighed heavily, pacing across the room. "I know that," Sirius finally said, perhaps sounding a little harsher than he had intended. "I don't know why this time is so different. Maybe because Greyback is a nutcase and the thought of you going to _live _with him…"

"It disgusts me too if that's any consolation."

"So don't go!" Sirius exclaimed. "If it's going to make you that uncomfortable…"

"You're missing the point," Remus interrupted him. He had wrapped his hand around one of the bedposts, paying much more attention to the details etched into the wood than he should have. "Are you about to tell me that you've never once, in all the years that you've worked for the Order, done anything that's made you uncomfortable?" Remus raised his eyes, watching his best friend closely. He paused for effect and added, "I know you have."

Sirius immediately opened his mouth to respond, but once again, there was nothing he could say - nothing that wouldn't make him look like a hypocrite. As a last resort, he blurted out, "This is different!" He grimaced then, knowing that wouldn't help his argument. "It's absolutely ludicrous if you ask me."

"We're in a war, Padfoot. Few things make sense anymore."

"Just think about this for a second."

"I have."

"Have you?" Sirius asked, sounding doubtful. "Have you _really_? Because I don't think you have."

Remus leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees and running a hand through his hair. His eyes were narrowed when he raised his gaze again. "You really think I didn't give very serious thought to this before I gave Albus my word?"

"No, I don't."

"Well, think again," Remus snapped. "I do know what I'm getting myself into, all right? You may not think so, but I do, so I wish you'd give me a little bit more credit. Albus wouldn't have asked me in the first place if he didn't think I could do this."

Crossing his arms over his chest, Sirius asked, "Are you sure you aren't letting that cloud your judgment?"

Remus didn't reply, mostly because he wasn't sure what to say to that. A small part of him was wondering if maybe Sirius had a point, if maybe Dumbledore was putting too much responsibility on him.

"You told me," Sirius said, taking a few steps closer, "that werewolves like Greyback live like animals."

"They do."

"Well, you're nothing like that, Remus!" Sirius said firmly, feeling confident that he was finally getting Remus to see reason. "You've never been like that! Now you're going to go live with these werewolves and try and act like you fit in with them? Don't you see how bonkers that sounds? That would be like me going to live with the rest of the Blacks, pretending I'm just like _them_." He paused, shaking his head. "It doesn't _work_."

"That's where you're wrong."

Sirius blinked. "What?"

"It's not as bonkers as you think it is," Remus said firmly. "On the contrary, acting like the rest of them will be the easy part."

Shaking his head in confusion, Sirius said, "I don't follow."

"I've told you," Remus explained, "that controlling the wolf is hard. Doing what they do - letting it control you - is easy. That's all I have to do…let Moony out a bit. No, it's not something I'm accustomed to, but it will be pretty natural for me. Moony _is _who I am. I just don't show it, but I am capable of doing so."

"That sounds even more insane!" Sirius hissed. "I mean, are you listening to yourself? 'Let Moony out.' I can't believe I'm hearing this!" He covered his eyes with his hands.

"It has to be done, Padfoot." Sirius opened his mouth to respond, but Remus talked over him. "Put yourself in my place for a moment, would you? What if Albus had asked you to go and live with the rest of your family, pretending that you had changed your mind about everything for the purposes of spying on them. Are you honestly telling me that you wouldn't do it, just because you would be out of your element? Or would you go, do your best, and use the information you gained to our advantage?"

Sirius couldn't lie, of course; it was funny sometimes how well Remus knew him. He sighed heavily. "You know I would do it. I'd go in a second."

"So why do I get a double standard?"

Sirius struggled with his possible responses to that. "Because you're Moony!" he cried, throwing his arms up in the air. He was relieved to see a small smile present on the werewolf's lips. "You're my best friend. You know I'm not about to let you go and do something completely crazy without a fight."

"I know," Remus whispered, "but I don't think there's anything you can say to change my mind. You know why I have to do this. It's the same reason why you would do it."

Growling in frustration, Sirius muttered, "I know." He took a deep breath, held it, and then let it out slowly in an effort to calm himself. He threw his hands up again in a sign of defeat. "I still think this is nuts, but if you insist on going…"

"I do."

"When are you going?"

"Next week," Remus replied. "Albus wants me to go as soon as possible before the next full moon gets too close. I have to get as established as I can with them before I even think about how I'm going to get through a transformation with them."

Silence fell, and the two men stared at each other for a long time, not saying anything. It was hovering on the edge of being uncomfortable, but it hadn't quite reached that point yet. After a while, Sirius said, "Just…try not to get yourself killed again, all right?"

"I don't intend to." A strange expression overtook Remus's face - something in between a smile and a grimace. "And the same goes for you. No running off and finding curtains to fall into while I'm gone."

"I'm never going to hear the end of that, am I?"

Remus looked smug now. "No."

"Good." When Remus gave him a strange look, Sirius let out a bark of laughter. "You can't die now, because you just said you'd bug me about that forever."

Remus smirked. "I will, Padfoot. For as long as you need me to."

"Forever," Sirius reiterated.

"Forever it is, then."

* * *

The werewolf compound was partially housed in an abandoned colony which Remus found strangely ironic. But then again, it was just like Greyback to want to make a werewolf colony over into his own personal dominion. Remus imagined he found that vengefully satisfying.

The compound itself stood at the edge of a forest and not very far from a small village - the perfect spot for Greyback and the rest of his pack to whet their appetite for flesh.

Much of what remained of the colony had fallen into disrepair. Some of the buildings had been destroyed completely by the werewolves, leaving only stone foundations behind. The chain link fence surrounding the colony had long since been torn down, the victim of many full moons past. Just a few sections of the fence still remained, clinging to the forest floor, intertwined with underbrush and weeds.

As the pack's numbers increased, their territory had grown beyond these boundaries and into the neighboring forest. There was a cave not far from what used to be the colony's mess hall which Remus could tell the pack now used for shelter as well; there was a clear dirt path to it, the weeds having been worn away by years of use.

The entire place smelled of blood and decay, making Remus's stomach curl up into an uncomfortable knot. He wasn't sure how he was even going to make it through one night here, let alone weeks, or months, or - Merlin forbid - years. But Remus would try and integrate himself into the pack as best he could.

Remus had nothing with him, save for the clothes on his back. The werewolves lived off the land (and people) and they had very few possessions, relying on the ability to quickly pick up and leave if need be. Possessions and settling down were human things.

Remus didn't even have his wand, which made him feel almost naked. He didn't think he'd ever been without it, not since he'd first gotten it when he was eleven. His hand kept instinctively going to his pocket to feel for the handle, but it wasn't there; he had left it behind in the safety of number twelve, Grimmauld Place. Magic was for wizards, not werewolves. If Remus was going to fit in at all, he had to play the part as much as possible.

Shivering against the crisp autumn air, Remus's eyes scanned the buildings, wondering which one Greyback used for his quarters. Remus knew he had to find Greyback first; if anyone else caught him sneaking around, Greyback would be less than sympathetic.

Picking his way through the underbrush, Remus made his way towards the first group of buildings. The moon was waning in the sky, not providing very much light at all. He squinted his eyes into the darkness, once again wishing that he had his wand to help him see.

The very first building he came seemed dark and empty. Remus stepped up to it, quickly pressing himself up against the splintered wooden siding. He stopped and listened, waiting for any sign of movement beyond. When none came, he peeked out around the corner, where the main lane of the colony spread out before him.

The door on the next building to right stood wide open, throwing a bright golden stream of light out onto the weed-covered ground. The windows had all been boarded up, but small hints of light here and there managed to break through. Remus waited for any sign of movement.

After what seemed like forever, there finally was a sign of life. Through the darkness, Remus could just make out a figure emerging from the cave, hurrying towards the main area of the colony. Biting his lip, Remus pressed himself against the wooden wall of his building again, silently praying that he hadn't been detected.

The man - werewolf - approaching him seemed close to Remus's own age. His clothes were ripped and torn, and even in the darkness, Remus could see many places where they had grown threadbare. The werewolf's hair was long, black, and graying, but not quite as much as Remus's own. It almost reminded Remus of Sirius, making him feel slightly homesick.

Remus had to suppress the urge to let out a mocking laugh. He hadn't been here for more than thirty minutes, and already he wanted to go home, back to number twelve, Grimmauld Place. Remus shook his head harshly, willing himself to remain focused on what he was here to do.

The young werewolf hurried up the steps of the building with the light on, but then he stopped. He hovered in the doorway, standing straight and placing his hands behind his back. "Sir?" he asked quietly.

"Well, come in and get on with it!" a voice thundered from within the building, and it was one that Remus recognized immediately - Greyback.

The werewolf stepped into the shack, almost disappearing from sight completely. Remus took several steps around the building he was hiding behind in an effort to keep an eye on the werewolf. Everywhere else within the compound seemed to be deserted; the rest of the pack must have gone out on a hunt, so Remus wasn't concerned with being seen anymore.

"Talon," Greyback said slowly, his voice carrying on the evening breeze. "Did you find him?"

"Yes, sir," the werewolf - Talon? - replied. "Well, Canin did. The boy you inquired about lives not far from here, in the village in that direction." Remus could see him gesturing back toward the area of the cave.

"Excellent," Greyback drawled, and Remus could imagine him licking his lips or rubbing his hands together in excitement. "Next full moon, that is where we will position ourselves and I will turn the boy. We'll see how his father feels about us vile creatures then, when his own son is one." Footsteps echoed in small shack, quickly followed by Greyback's very pleased voice. "Well done, Talon. You may go now, and close the door behind you."

"Yes, sir," Talon replied, emerging from the shack again. "Goodnight." He pulled the door closed behind him, descending the steps, and heading back in the direction of the cave.

It then occurred to Remus how nervous he was. His heart was beating so hard, he almost feared that the other werewolves would hear, and he had dug his fingernails into the one of the wooden boards he was leaning against. Remus knew he had to go now, before the rest of the werewolves returned, but he almost couldn't make himself move.

Leaning his forehead against the building, he took a deep breath and let it out. A part of him desperately wanted to turn around, to go back and tell Dumbledore that this entire idea had been a mistake. But he knew he couldn't. He had already given his word, and he wasn't about to go back on it.

Remus's breath was coming fast and hard now, despite his best efforts to the contrary. He knew he had to calm himself; if Greyback even sensed the tiniest bit of fear in him, it was unlikely that he would be accepted into the pack. Greyback demanded nothing but strength and nerve from his followers.

The minutes began to stretch, and Remus almost lost track of the time. He kept imagining what would happen if the other werewolves came back. Even though he wouldn't admit it, he was hoping they would, so that he would have an excuse to get the hell out of here.

If he didn't move now, however, he knew he never would. Taking another shaking breath, Remus stepped out from behind the building. He clenched his hands into fists, trying his best to find that Gryffindor courage inside of him that he was supposed to have.

Striding purposefully toward the building with the light still burning, Remus hurried across the overgrown grass and up the small set of stairs. Before he lost his nerve, Remus knocked gently on the old wooden door.

"WHAT?" Greyback demanded from within. Remus didn't move, but he heard footsteps, which signaled Greyback approaching the door. "What in the bloody hell do you want now, Tal -" Greyback stopped as he pulled the door open, which squeaked loudly on its hinges. Greyback's wild and matted grey hair was framed in the golden lamplight, his cold yellow eyes immediately connecting with Remus's.

Neither one of them said anything, but Remus stared back. He was trying to look confident and sure, but that was something he wasn't feeling at all.

"Wellll," Greyback hummed, his mouth twisting into a horrible smile. "Look what we have here - Lupin, right?"

It wasn't a question; Greyback knew who he was, but Remus answered anyway. "Yes. I didn't…have anywhere else to go." Remus had to look away, sure that Greyback would be able to see the lies and uncertainty in his eyes.

Greyback was running his tongue across his dried and peeling lips as he looked Remus over. "Uh huh. I find that hard to believe. What about those wizard _friends _of yours?" he sneered.

"I wouldn't call them friends, exactly." Remus swallowed, realizing for the first time just how badly Greyback smelled. It was a combination of how Remus smelled after a transformation - blood, sweat, and fur, only a million times worse. Remus hated that smell; it reminded him of a hundred painful transformations and about the time his father had taken him to the werewolf colony when he was little. He shut his eyes, trying to stop his stomach from clenching.

When the feeling passed, Remus looked at Greyback again, trying his best to keep his gaze steady. "Friends trust you."

"And yours don't, hm?"

It was difficult gauging Greyback's feelings. He always seemed to have that same look on his face - one of perverted enjoyment.

"No," Remus whispered. "Not now. Not in the way they should and not with this war going on. Actually, I can't say that they ever have."

Greyback looked rather amused. "You're just realizing this now?"

"No," Remus repeated. "I've always known that, I suppose. I'm just tired of…pretending."

One of Greyback's eyebrows went up. "So you come here?"

"I didn't…"

"Know where else to go," Greyback interrupted. "Yes, you've said." The large unkempt werewolf stood rooted to his spot for a long time, as if debating with himself. After nearly a minute, he stepped aside, gesturing for Remus to enter. "Don't think that I'm inviting you to stay, but come in."

Remus hesitated for a split second before crossing the threshold. If he thought that Greyback had smelled bad while standing in the doorway, it was nothing compared to the stench that seemed to permeate every inch of the room.

The shack was similar to one of the bunks he had seen while visiting a werewolf colony when he was young. The bars, however, that had previously divided the room into cells had been torn away. Small round holes that stood in straight lines in the wooden floorboards and ceiling evidenced this. Everything else in the room had been removed as well it seemed; the only things present were a tatty mattress on the floor, an armchair that had seen better days, and a rickety table and chairs that Remus wouldn't trust to support his weight.

Greyback shut the door, which gave another loud squeal that made Remus shiver. He didn't turn to face Greyback, but instead pretended to be taking in the room for much longer than was necessary.

"I've asked you before," Greyback said conversationally, "to join me, and you always made it quite clear that you weren't interested. Why now?"

"I told you." Remus made himself look at Greyback again, even though every sight and smell of the older werewolf made him feel sick. If he was really going to do this, he should probably start getting comfortable with the idea. "I'm tired of pretending. They didn't trust me in the first war, and they sure as hell don't trust me now," Remus explained.

"Not even that Dumbledore?"

"No," Remus said, and he let the repulsion he felt show on his face. "He actually had the audacity to ask me, just last week, if I was still _loyal _to him."

"Did he now?" Greyback's voice was toneless, expressionless.

"You'd think he'd know by now in the bloody second war."

This seemed to strike a chord in Greyback; that terrifying toothy smile of his was back. "He's afraid," Greyback sound around a laugh. "He's terrified that the Dark Lord is gaining so much power and so many followers."

Remus had to control the urge to laugh in return, to tell Greyback how wrong he was. Instead, he said, "He wanted to know if I had given any thought to joining _my own kind_."

Greyback watched him thoughtfully and then he nodded. "You see?" He started stalking forward until he was mere inches away from Remus, staring down at him. "After all you've done for them, you see how they treat you? Like you're some kind of _disease_, like you don't even deserve to breathe the same air they do."

"I know." Unable to stand the smell of Greyback any longer, Remus stepped away, pretending he was taking in his surroundings again. "How can I continue to pledge my loyalty to a man that doesn't trust me in return? Who constantly treats me like I don't belong? Even after I've done everything in my power to prove otherwise?" Remus clenched his teeth now as well as his fists, scowling.

"That's the way the world is, Remus," Greyback said, taking several steps towards him again. "No matter what you do, you'll never belong with them. You'll never fit in. Not like you would here."

"That's why I came," Remus bit out shakily.

"To see if you could belong here?" Greyback laughed, a horrible barking sound that was almost the exact opposite of Sirius's. That thought made Remus feel homesick again.

Greyback drew even closer, reaching out to grab the front of Remus's robes. He tugged on them until Remus was pressed up against him, Greyback's odor positively sickening in this close proximity.

"I don't accept just anyone, of course," Greyback said, grinning again, his unsightly yellow teeth gleaming in the lamplight. "But I don't turn away potential followers either, unlike _some _people. You'll just have to prove yourself."

"Of course," Remus said, trying to keep his voice from shaking. "Just tell me what I have to do." As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Remus regretted them. Dumbledore was certain Remus would have to pass some kind of test. The sooner they knew what it was, the sooner they could figure out how Remus could possibly get through it, but Remus had sounded much too anxious. He knew that, and so did Greyback.

"No," Greyback said, "not yet. It's not time. You won't know when it's coming, but trust me, it is."

"But how…?"

"I'll let you know when it's time," Greyback said, his eyes gleaming with amusement. "You'll have minimal time to prepare, but it will test how strong your loyalty to me is." He paused for a moment and then without warning, he shoved Remus back until he slammed into the wall. His back screamed in pain, but Remus tried to ignore it, keeping his eyes pinned on Greyback.

Greyback pressed himself up against Remus, once again so close that Remus thought he was going to be sick from the smell. "Make no mistake," Greyback growled. "I do not tolerate _lies _or _insubordination _of any sort. If you fail, if you do not demonstrate absolute loyalty to me, I'll rip your throat out so fast you won't know what hit you. If, on the other hand, you are loyal to me, you have nothing to fear. Is any of this unclear?"

Remus shook his head, not trusting himself to speak.

"And you still wish to stay?"

Remus wanted nothing more than to say no, to get the hell out of there and go back home, but it was too late now. Greyback would kill him for wasting his time before he ever got anywhere near the door. Steeling all his courage, Remus firmly replied, "Yes."

"Very well." Greyback finally released him and took a step back. The relief from Greyback's odor was welcome, but that was about the only thing that was. A part of Remus was terrified of what would happen next. Greyback extended his arm and pointed at the door. "Move."

Remus was frozen to his spot. A million questions were going through his mind, and he felt too overwhelmed to even move. He opened and closed his mouth several times before he was able to push himself away from the wall. Remus headed for the door, wondering where Greyback could possibly want him to go.

Remus went for the door and pulled it open, the fresh autumn air rushing in to meet him. Before he could take a moment to enjoy it, Greyback shoved a hand into his back. Remus stumbled down the stairs, the weed-strewn ground rushing up to meet him.

"Get the hell up," Greyback snarled. "I don't have all night to baby-sit you."

Climbing to his feet as quickly as he could, Remus felt startled by just how fast Greyback's demeanor had changed. Not more than twenty minutes ago, he had been calm and carried on a reasonable conversation; now, he looked almost ready to explode if Remus said or did the wrong thing.

"That way," Greyback instructed, pointing in the direction of the shack that Remus had hidden behind. Remus went, not wanting to do anything to upset him further.

When they got to the front door of the shack, Greyback grabbed the back of Remus's collar with one hand. With the other, he reached out and wrenched the shack's door open, shoving Remus inside.

This shack was almost completely dark, the only light provided by the moon sneaking through the boards that covered the windows. Before Remus's eyes could even adjust, Greyback pulled open another door just to the right of the entrance.

"Inside," Greyback barked, giving Remus another shove.

Remus stumbled again, reaching out his hands for support. When his fingers closed around a cold iron bar, that was when he realized he was in a cell.

"Have to keep you close," Greyback said, "so I can keep an eye on you." With a loud bang, he slammed the cell door shut, making Remus feel sick all over again. "Once you prove your loyalty, you'll be allowed with the others. I don't trust you yet, so this is for our own safety. You understand, don't you?" Without waiting for an answer, Greyback instructed, "Get some sleep. I expect you to be up early to meet the rest of my pack." Without another word, Greyback turned on his heel and left the shack, slamming the door shut behind him.

Remus swallowed and waited, letting his eyes adjust to the darkness. This shack was indeed similar to the one that housed Greyback, approximately the same size, except the cells from its werewolf colony days remained. Remus thought he counted seven other cells, four on each side of the room.

They were tiny. There was enough room in his cage for a bed and a toilet, but not much else. Remus alone took up the remaining space, which was barely enough to take one step in.

Dropping down onto the bed, it squeaked heavily under him. Remus ran his hands through his hair, wondering if this had been such a good idea after all. It was too late to think about that now, of course, but the thought of what Greyback could possibly have in store for him terrified him.

But he was in.

_To be continued_


	2. Chapter 2: The Pack

**Love Sees More 3: Greyback's Pack**

Chapter 2 - The Pack

Remus wasn't entirely sure how he'd gotten to sleep that night. When Greyback had left him alone in his cell, Remus was much too tense and nervous to even think about relaxing. Not to mention, the cot he had been provided with was hard and lumpy at best, with nothing more than a scratchy sheet and a pillow that Remus thought must have hidden a brick.

And the smell…the same stench that followed Greyback around seemed to be in every single area of the compound that Remus had seen so far. The smell here wasn't as bad as it was in Greyback's room or around the werewolf himself, but it was strong enough to be disturbing. It kept pushing images of horrific full moons into Remus's mind that he could have done without.

But for some reason unbeknownst to him, Remus had drifted off almost as soon as he had laid down on his undesirable bed. Perhaps it had just been the fact that he was emotionally exhausted. Remus's mind kept spinning with everything Greyback had said, everything he had promised, and Remus almost thought he was going to go mad trying to sort it all out. Maybe his brain had just shut down out of pity for him, but whatever the reason, he was grateful for the sleep he had gotten.

Remus awoke the next morning to loud voices outside of his shack. He cracked an eye open, taking in the pale early morning sunlight that was managing to sneak in between the boards on the windows. At first, a very small sense of panic arose in him before he realized where he was. With Greyback. That thought almost made Remus want to go back to sleep, to pull the blanket over his head. He wanted to pretend that the next time he opened his eyes, he would be back in his welcoming bed at number twelve, Grimmauld Place.

The yelling outside, however, continued, piquing Remus's curiosity. Pushing any other thoughts from his mind, Remus sat up, listening as carefully as he could. He thought he heard Greyback outside and another man, but what they were talking about, Remus couldn't tell.

Remus's eyes quickly ran over his cell, taking in everything he hadn't been able to see last night in the darkness. It was indeed tiny - the cot just managed to fit, leaving enough room for a toilet in the corner and a small square of blank floor. Remus began to wonder when the toilet was last scrubbed, but he decided he didn't want to know.

He pushed his rough blanket aside and stood up, raising his gaze upwards. There was one small rectangular window in his cell, on the wall across from the bed. It, too, was boarded up, leaving only a few trails of sunlight to break through.

Running his teeth over his bottom lip, Remus braced his hands against the wall and stepped up onto the rim of the toilet. He hesitated for a moment until he was sure he had his balance, and then he reached for the boards covering the small window. He tugged at the lowest one, and the splintered wood quickly gave way, leaving the bottom inch or so of the window uncovered.

Remus leaned into the wall and tried to raise himself up on his tiptoes as much as possible. The window was just low enough for him to peer over the bottom sill. The window itself was grimy and cloudy, but he could still see through it well enough.

Greyback was standing not far from the entrance to Remus's shack, having a very heated discussion with that dark-haired werewolf from the night before - Talon. Remus held his breath and pressed his ear up against the gap in the boards.

"He's a known supporter of Dumbledore!" Talon snarled. "What more proof do you need?"

"I said I'm giving him a chance," Greyback replied calmly, "not that I trust him yet."

"And you're making a huge mistake! He doesn't even deserve that much!" Talon cried. "Are you that stupid that…"

Talon, however, didn't get any further. Greyback's right hand flashed out, grabbing the front of Talon's robes like he had done to Remus last night. Greyback pulled the werewolf closer and then fisted his left hand in Talon's hair, pulling his head back. Talon stood frozen, his heaving with every breath.

"_Excuse me_?" Greyback growled. "Would you care to repeat that?"

Talon opened and closed his mouth several times, looking like a fish on land. Finally, he shook just his head as much as he could with Greyback still holding on to his hair.

"No. No, I thought not," Greyback said. "But I heard you the first time. You think I'm stupid, hm?"

"N-no, sir." Talon's voice wavered erratically.

Greyback looked thoughtful, watching Talon closely, as if deciding what to do. "So why on earth would you call me that?" Greyback sounded truly curious.

"I-I'm sorry, sir," Talon stuttered. "I don't think you're stupid at all. It just…c-came out…I don't like newcomers. Y-you know that…"

"You know what I think?" Greyback asked, his voice falling into a growl again. He pulled Talon even closer so that their noses were almost touching. "I think you _did _mean it. You're just too cowardly to admit it."

"No, sir! I promise! I-"

Greyback shook Talon violently, forcing him into silence. "You know what else I think? Giving Lupin a chance isn't my mistake. My mistake was making _you _my second-in-command!"

"NO! Sir, you didn't…"

"I don't believe I asked your opinion on the matter," Greyback yelled, "so _hold your tongue_!" He paused for effect and then went on, "This is _my _pack and I will _not _be questioned! If I feel Lupin deserves a chance, then you damn well better get used to it and accept it. Is that clear, or do I need to remind you of your place again?"

"No, sir. It's clear."

"You better make sure of that," Greyback snarled. After a moment, he released Talon, but then placed both of his hands flat on his chest. Greyback shoved him hard, causing him to stumble and fall to the weed-covered ground. "Get the hell out of my sight!"

Talon scrambled to his feet and started to head toward the back of the colony. Just then, however, Greyback called him back.

"Go to the mess hall," Greyback ordered. "The others will be there by now, and I'll be bringing Lupin by to meet you all. You may want to let them know of the conversation we just had - that _I_ make the decisions here and I will not tolerate my _subordinates questioning _my actions!"

"Yes, sir." Talon bowed his head and took off running for the largest building.

Greyback watched him go, shaking visibly with every breath he took. Remus made a mental note to never call Greyback stupid, to never question his decisions, and to never speak unless spoken to. Those were good things to know, he decided.

After nearly a minute, when his breathing had slowed, Greyback turned towards Remus's shack. Remus let out a quiet gasp before he let go of the wall and stepped down off the toilet. The last thing he wanted was for Greyback to know he had been spying. Remus dove for his bed, quickly pulling the covers up over himself once again. He closed his eyes tightly, pretending to be asleep.

Just then, the door of the shack squealed open loudly, banging into the wall.

Remus stirred, opening his eyes slowly and faking a yawn. He blinked up at Greyback as he watched the older werewolf retrieve a key from the wall. It was on a large key ring and it had been hanging on a nail above the door. It was the first time Remus had noticed it.

"Up," Greyback ordered, approaching Remus's cell and sliding the key into the lock in the door.

Remus immediately threw his covers aside and got to his feet, not wanting to upset Greyback any further than he already was.

"The rest of my pack is waiting to meet you," Greyback informed him, sliding the cell door open. "Follow me." Greyback then returned the key ring to its nail above the door.

Not saying a word, Remus stepped out of his cell, eyeing the key closely where it was now swinging back and forth on its nail. It was much too far for him to reach from his cell, but perhaps it would come in handy one day.

"You're quiet this morning," Greyback said conversationally as they stepped out into the bright autumn sunshine.

Remus swallowed before replying. "Yes, sir. Just…thinking, I suppose."

One of Greyback's eyebrows went up. He looked amused. "You suppose?"

"All right, I am thinking."

"About?"

Remus paused, considering his words carefully. "How different it is here."

"Mhm," Greyback hummed in agreement. "And you slept well, I trust?"

Remus blinked, confused that Greyback sounded so certain of that fact. "Yes, sir."

Greyback nodded as if he had been expecting that. "Everyone does after they first come here," Greyback informed him. "It's because you're finally among your equals, Remus. You're no longer with a bunch of wizards or _humans_-" Greyback spat out the word as if it made him sick, "-simply _pretending _to belong. You're just like the rest of us here - you're the same." Almost as an afterthought, Greyback added, "Except for the ranks, of course."

"The ranks?"

"Every werewolf here has a rank," Greyback replied. "The higher the rank, the more I trust them and the more privileges they have." He placed his hand over his chest proudly before continuing. "I am the alpha, of course. My second-in-command, Edmund Talon is a beta. Under him are the gamma wolves. I trust them a great deal and I would consider them above all others to replace Edmund if the need ever arose. There are six ranks in all. You're at the lowest rank right now, a zeta."

That didn't make Remus feel very confident, but a part of him almost felt like laughing. He found it funny that a moment ago, Greyback had been talking about them all being equals, just before launching into his monologue about ranks.

"Once you prove your loyalty to me," Greyback added, "you'll be moved up to an epsilon. You'll have complete access to the compound and you'll be able to interact with the others freely. The longer you're here and the more I feel I can trust you, you may slowly move up through the ranks."

"Are there any other zetas here?"

"Not at the moment, no."

Aside from spying, Dumbledore wanted Remus to reason with some of the other werewolves, to try and persuade them to Dumbledore's side. Remus figured it would be easiest with some of the lower ranked werewolves, ones that obviously weren't as loyal to Greyback as some of the others. Being the only zeta at the moment, however, would make it extra difficult. Everyone was probably already suspicious of him, if Talon's feelings were any indication.

It occurred to Remus that tattling on other members was probably something that Greyback rewarded. If anyone figured out that Remus was there to spy, they might very easily tell Greyback just to prove their loyalty even more. Remus would definitely have to be careful about who he trusted here, if anyone. At the moment, it would be Remus's word against a werewolf of a higher rank; it was no mystery who Greyback would believe. Remus would have to wait until he was an epsilon at least before he even thought about putting that part of Dumbledore's plan into action.

"Everyone else has been here for quite some time," Greyback went on, pulling Remus out of his reverie. "The last time we had a zeta was about a dozen or so moons ago."

"What happened to him?" Remus asked before he could stop himself.

Greyback grinned so wide, Remus could almost see all of his horrible yellow teeth. "He didn't pass his test, unfortunately," Greyback said, but his tone didn't suggest it was _unfortunate_. On the contrary, Greyback sounded rather pleased with the situation. "Of course, once you fail, I don't allow you to stay." After a long paused, he added, "I don't allow you to leave, either."

Remus didn't have - or didn't want - to inquire further. That was obviously a warning to Remus about what would happen if he failed whatever Greyback might expect him to do. Remus felt his stomach twisting up into a knot again at the thought, but he tried not to let it show.

They continued on in silence, down the center of the compound, until they reached the long rectangular building towards the back. Greyback stepped forward, pulling the large wooden door open and gesturing for Remus to step inside.

Remus's heart pounded as he climbed the three steps. He wasn't exactly sure what to expect from the other werewolves. He almost thought he was going to be lynched as soon as he entered the building or something.

It was dark inside the mess hall. The windows had similarly been boarded up, allowing just enough sunlight through the cracks so that Remus could see. As soon as his eyes adjusted, he was surprised to find all of the other werewolves standing still and quiet. They formed a half circle around him and door, watching him closely as he stepped inside.

Remus thought he counted approximately twenty-five to thirty werewolves. Most of them were men, although there were a few women scattered throughout. Truthfully, Remus had been wondering if there would be any women at all; Greyback just naturally seemed more inclined to trust men.

Most of the werewolves appeared to be close to Remus's age, but there were some that looked much younger, and there were a few that looked about as old as Greyback. All of their robes were in various states of decay, and they all looked like they could do with a shower and some serious personal hygiene. None of them looked as bad as Greyback, however.

The inside of the building itself had been completely gutted. There was absolutely no evidence to suggest that this had ever been a dining hall of any kind. Other than a few wooden chairs and a small round table in the corner, it was completely devoid of furniture. The walls and floor were covered in numerous deep scratch marks, suggesting that this building might be used during the full moons.

Remus noticed that Talon was glaring at him, his hands clenched tightly into fists. If Remus hadn't been listening to him and Greyback earlier, he'd probably be wondering what in the world he'd ever done to Talon. None of the other werewolves seemed particularly interested in Remus one way or the other, which was somewhat of a relief.

Greyback soon entered as well, looking around to check that everyone was present. Remus inched back toward the wall, keeping his eyes pinned on the floor, suddenly feeling very self-conscious.

"Good, everyone's here," Greyback said pleasantly. "As I'm sure Edmund has already informed you, we had a new member join us last night." He gestured in Remus's direction. "Remus Lupin has entered the pack at the zeta level, of course. He will be tested next-" Greyback stopped suddenly, as if he had intended to say more, but had thought better of it. His eyes went uncomfortably to Remus.

_Next full moon_, Remus thought. _That's what he meant to say_. That didn't entirely surprise Remus - Dumbledore had suspected it would occur during a transformation - but it didn't exactly reassure him either. At least he knew, though, when to expect his test. He had nearly three weeks before then, so at least he had some time to try and figure out what it could be and to prepare himself for it.

Greyback cleared his throat. "Remus, my pack." Greyback swung his arm around the room, indicating the rest of his followers. He stopped on Edmund and said, "My second-in-command, Edmund Talon. If I'm not here for any reason, he is in charge. I expect you to give him the same respect and consideration that you give me."

Talon looked to be very amused by this, and Remus almost thought he was going to laugh out loud. He faked a cough to hide it instead, covering his mouth with his hand. Remus didn't have to wonder what that was about. Talon surely doubted that Remus had any respect for Greyback at all, and he would be right.

Greyback narrowed his eyes, stalking over to Talon. "Something wrong?" Greyback growled. "Something you might like to share with the rest of us?"

Talon's eyes went wide, his expression turning hard again. "No, sir."

"Think it's funny, do you?" Greyback asked.

"No, sir. Not at all."

"You, Talon, are treading on very thin ice!" Greyback was silent then, staring daggers down at Talon, as if considering what to do. Talon stared back, not daring to move an inch.

After nearly a minute, Greyback stepped away from Talon and glanced around the room. "Talon, it would seem," Greyback announced, beginning to pace, "thinks that I am incapable of making the best decisions for my pack. He questioned me this morning, in fact, asking why I was stupid enough to allow Remus in among us."

Several gasps went around the room. The other werewolves seemed shocked at this, and they began to whisper among themselves.

"SILENCE!" Greyback roared. The room fell quiet at once, everyone giving Greyback their full attention. Everyone, that was, except for Talon. His face had turned red and he was currently focused on the splintering floorboards beneath him.

"You know," Greyback said conversationally, "I was sort of hoping something like this would happen. It'll give me a chance to show Remus what happens when I am questioned in my own pack!" He turned on his heel, stomping back over to Talon. "Especially," he added, "by my very own _beta_."

Talon's brown eyes widened even further, and his bottom quivered slightly. "I'm sorry, sir. It won't happen again."

"Oh," Greyback responded, "you're damn right it won't." Talon opened his mouth to reply, but before he could get anything out, Greyback grabbed the front of his robes just like he had outside. This time, he pulled Talon forward and brought his knee up into Talon's stomach. Talon coughed and heaved, his eyes looking like they might possibly pop out of his sockets now.

"It's not so funny now, is it?" Greyback laughed. He pulled on Talon's robes again, forcing him to stand up straight. Then one of Greyback's hands shot back, forming into a fist. He punched Talon in the mouth and then released him, allowing him to crumble to the floor.

Talon curled up on his side, still coughing. One arm curled around his stomach and the other hand went up to dab at his bloody lip.

Remus found it hard to watch, but he didn't look away. If the whole thing was partially for Remus's benefit, he didn't think Greyback would be very happy if he didn't watch. Remus also kept reminding himself that Greyback liked strong werewolves in his pack - not weak ones that flinched away when Greyback was exercising discipline.

Turning back to Remus, Greyback said, "_That _is what happens when I am questioned in my own pack. Any questions?"

"No, sir," Remus whispered.

"Good," Greyback said. "That's all for this morning." He looked down at Talon who was still lying on the floor. Greyback's lips twisted into that grin again. "You're a mess. Get the hell up and pull yourself together. The rest of you may go to breakfast. Remus, you come with me. I'll show you how we eat."

The rest of the pack began to file out of the building, breaking up into groups and disappearing into the woods. If that was any indication, Remus really didn't want to know what they did for food.

Talon had gotten off the floor, but was still hunched over, holding on to his stomach. A line of a blood had spilled down over his chin and had left a couple deep red drops on the front of his robes. He kept pressing the palm of one hand against his mouth and pulling it away to see if it was still bleeding. Talon's eyes were focused on Remus, absolutely burning with hate.

"You may want to keep an eye on Remus," Greyback told Talon. "He's barely been here for eight hours and he already knows how to behave properly. The only time he's spoken is to answer me, and he hasn't moved from his spot. I remember when you used to be like that, Edmund. Before you let your status go to your head."

Remus really had to control the urge to laugh now. If anyone's status had gone to their head, it was clearly Greyback.

Talon drew a deep and shaky breath. "Sir…"

"There you go again!" Greyback shouted. "Opening your mouth when I didn't ask you to! Just because we have a new member doesn't mean you're allowed to show off for him." He stepped forward, grabbing the front of Talon's robes once more. "_Don't _make me regret the decision of making you my beta. That could all change, you know. In an instant. And it will if you keep running your mouth to me. There are five gammas below you that would jump at the chance to replace you and believe me, they _know _how to follow the rules." Greyback leaned in even closer, his lips only mere inches away from Talon's. "You haven't forgotten the rules, have you?"

"No, sir."

Greyback shook his head. "I'm not so sure about that, so you may stay here for the duration of breakfast. I suggest you use the time to think about what you did wrong and how you can prevent it from happening again. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, sir."

"And get yourself cleaned up for god's sakes!" Greyback ordered. "You're covered in your very own blood. That's not very becoming for my beta." He turned and stalked back towards the door, momentarily stopping in front of it. "Come, Remus. It's time for breakfast."

Remus hesitated, eyeing Talon carefully. This was not good. Remus hadn't even done anything and he already very clearly had an enemy.

"This isn't over, _Lupin_," Talon snarled. "You've got Greyback fooled now, but you won't for long. I'm on to you, and it won't be long before he figures you out, too."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Remus said quietly, trying to sound as innocent as possible. He was suddenly grateful for all those times Sirius had done something wrong and had said the very same thing; Remus had heard that line so many times, it wasn't hard to imitate.

"Yeah, sure you don't," Talon muttered, still wiping blood from his chin. "I just suggest you be very careful in the future. We're all very loyal to Greyback and if you do something wrong, we'll know."

"Are you sure?" Remus asked coolly. "Because after what just happened here, I'm not sure you even know what wrong is." He gave Talon a very poignant look before walking past him and following Greyback's lead.

"I do know!" Talon shouted after him. "But yes, run along now. Go kiss up to him as much as you can."

Remus wanted to turn and say something more, but he didn't. Greyback didn't like his werewolves doing things unless he told them, and right now, Remus had been ordered to follow. But he found it funny - kissing up as much as he could was exactly what he intended on doing.

Greyback was waiting for him just around the corner of the mess hall. As soon as Remus caught up to him, Greyback said, "I heard the two of you." He gestured back towards the entrance to the mess hall as they fell into step beside each other.

Remus swallowed, wondering if he would be in trouble for speaking to Talon when he hadn't been given permission. Greyback, however, didn't seem angry.

"Don't let him bait you," Greyback said. "He's just pissed that he got reprimanded in front of everyone. He has to take it out on someone. Believe me, I will be talking to him further about his behavior." Greyback threw his head back and laughed harshly before turning on Remus. "I'm counting on you now, you know. I'm counting on you to prove yourself, to prove that I _didn't _make a mistake by letting you into my pack. You wouldn't want Talon to be right, would you?"

"No, sir." Remus titled his chin up and in his firmest voice, he said, "He isn't."

Greyback's yellow eyes searched his, as if looking for the answer. "You better make sure of that. I would be _very _angry indeed if you failed me now."

Remus held his gaze, unflinching and unwavering. When Greyback was apparently satisfied, he continued down the path through the woods. Remus followed closely behind.

Greyback spent the morning showing Remus pretty much everything that was edible in the woods. Remus had already known that the werewolves lived off the land, and he could have done without Greyback's one-sided instructions. He encouraged Remus to eat - to hunt - as many live things as possible.

Remus, of course, wasn't about to begin preying on little furry animals. He just simply agreed with everything Greyback said, and then ate as many berries and nuts as he could find when the other werewolf wasn't watching. It wasn't much, but then again, he was used to going hungry a lot of the time when he lived alone.

Greyback eventually caught something and found a place on the forest floor to eat. Remus didn't see what it was and he didn't Iwant/I to know what it was either. He simply found his own spot, leaning up against a tree, waiting for Greyback to finish.

Remus closed his eyes, trying to imagine that he was back at number twelve, Grimmauld Place. It was almost easy. If he blocked out Greyback's noisy and sloppy chewing, he could focus on the soft breeze and the leaves rustling around him. Remus kept telling himself that he was sitting in the garden at home, and that the pleasant silence would be interrupted by Padfoot's barking at any moment. He smiled.

"Hi."

Jumping, Remus opened his eyes to find a girl with dirty blonde hair standing before him. She looked quite young, perhaps no more than twenty-five, and her pale blue eyes sparkled brightly.

Remus's eyes immediately went to Greyback, wondering if they were allowed to talk at all. Greyback didn't seem the least bit concerned; he was much more interested in pulling the fur off of whatever he was eating.

"It's breakfast," the girl said, as if reading his mind. "We're allowed to talk at meals."

"Oh," Remus said, looking back to the girl. "Hi, then."

"I'm Althea," she said, sitting down beside him.

"Remus."

"I know." Althea's cheeks turned a bright shed of red and she giggled. "I know who you are."

Remus bit at his lower lip. "I suppose a lot of you do."

Althea shrugged. "Dunno. I don't really talk to anyone else. Before you came, I was the newest one here, and I haven't gotten to know anyone yet."

Tilting his head curiously, Remus asked, "How long have you been here?"

"Almost two years now."

One of Remus's eyebrows went up. "And you still haven't gotten to know anyone?"

Althea giggled again. "Well, they're not exactly friendly if you know what I mean."

"I know," Remus agreed. "I've already made an enemy out of Talon."

"He doesn't like any of the newcomers," Althea explained. "He's always suspicious and accusing them of being spies."

"Oh good," Remus said, laughing humorlessly. "Now I don't feel so alone."

"Nah," Althea went on, "he was horrible to me until I proved my loyalty."

Remus was almost tempted to ask how one did that, but with Greyback so nearby, he wasn't going to risk it. Greyback clearly didn't want him to know, and Remus wasn't about to ruin the progress he'd made so far by making Greyback angry with him.

Instead, Remus asked, "What rank are you now?"

"I'm still an epsilon," Althea said, "one rank above you. I haven't really had a chance to prove myself beyond that yet."

Remus began to wonder if Althea was as sweet as she was pretending. If she had been an epsilon for nearly two years, surely she would want some way to further prove her loyalty by now. Perhaps she was trying to get close to Remus just so she could run to Greyback with what she had learned. Greyback might even have asked her to do so. Remus would have to be careful about what he said to her and to everyone else in the pack. None of the other werewolves trusted him yet, and Remus wasn't about to give his trust to them in return either.

"Remus," Greyback suddenly called for him, pulling him out of his thoughts. Greyback had gotten to his feet and was currently using one of his long yellowed fingernails to pick at his teeth. Remus tried not to pay attention to the fact that blood was smeared all over Greyback's lips. Apparently, it wasn't becoming to wear one's own blood, but it was perfectly fine to wear the blood of something else. Remus felt his stomach clench in disgust.

"It's time to go," Greyback said, motioning for Remus to join him again. "You'll be returned to your cell after each meal."

Remus wasn't exactly thrilled with the idea of returning to his small, cramped, and smelly cell. He had been enjoying the fresh air and talking with Althea. As suspicious as he still was of her, it was nice to hold a somewhat normal adult conversation with someone again.

Bidding his goodbyes to Althea, Remus stood, brushing off the grass and leaves that clung to his robes. He followed Greyback across the trail that led to the main part of the compound.

Once they returned to the shack with Remus's cell, Greyback ushered him inside again. Remus entered his cell without having to be told and Greyback slammed the door behind him once again.

Greyback then wrapped his long-nailed fingers around the bars, watching him closely. "You did well this morning, Remus. You didn't cause any trouble and I didn't have to raise my voice to you once. If you keep this up, you'll be an epsilon in no time."

"Thank you, sir," Remus whispered, his eyes on the floor. He kept them there until he heard Greyback's footsteps across the floor and the shack door close again.

When Remus was alone, he let out a long breath and sat down heavily on his bed. He buried his head in his hands, taking several deep breaths. The entire time with Greyback, he had been nervous beyond belief, but to be honest, being a part of Greyback's pack wasn't as hard as Remus thought it would be. Being quiet and unassuming were things that came naturally to Remus, and that was the way Greyback liked his followers. All Remus had to do was be himself, really.

Remus didn't realize, however, the emotional toll that being one of Greyback's followers would take on him. It had already begun, in fact, working its way into the very recesses of his mind. He was slowly turning into someone that he soon wouldn't recognize.

_To be continued..._


	3. Chapter 3: The Task

**Love Sees More 3: Greyback's Pack**

Chapter 3 - The Task

And so life at the compound continued, which Remus decided was one of the most boring things he'd ever done in his life. Greyback liked routine, so everything was always the same - exactly the same, day in and day out.

Remus would be let out of his cell before each meal, and there was always a meeting in the mess hall first. Most of the time, they didn't have much of anything to talk about; Remus assumed that Greyback held the meetings just to make sure that everyone else was still around and hadn't run off anywhere.

For meals, Remus would follow Greyback into the woods and (pretend to) watch him hunt for something. Remus continued to fill up on as many edible fruits and nuts as he could find, even though Greyback still encouraged him to hunt live things. Greyback said it was good for exercise and reflexes, and he seemed to think it a bit silly when Remus refused, but at least it wasn't something Greyback insisted on enforcing.

After meals, Remus would return to his cell and wait for the next one. Remus lost track of time after a while, his days becoming nothing more than hours upon hours of sitting in his cell, with a few meals scattered along the way.

It gave Remus a lot of time to think, especially about Sirius. He kept wondering what his best friend was doing, but most of the time, Remus thought about the fact that Sirius had spent nearly twelve years in Azkaban. It was almost hard for Remus to imagine, sitting in a cell like his for years on end, and for something he didn't even do. But then again, Remus hadn't ever bothered to contact Sirius during that time, to try and see if maybe things weren't exactly as they had seemed.

Now Remus was spending his own days doing nothing but sitting in a cell, staring at the walls. It almost felt fitting to Remus…like he deserved it, for thinking Sirius guilty all those years ago.

He was still terrified about what Greyback's test for him would be, but at the same time, Remus almost wanted it to come. Once he passed it, Greyback had said that he would be free to go wherever he pleased then. Whatever Remus would be forced to do might even be preferable to going absolutely stir crazy from sitting in the same cell for ages.

Currently, the only break from the routine that had become his life came whenever one of the other werewolves would have to be disciplined. It didn't happen often, because it was quite clear that they were all afraid of Greyback, but it did happen. The rest of the werewolves would be forced to watch, and Remus had come to dread those occurrences - the looks of fear on their faces when Greyback would become violent towards them.

The only consolation to Remus was that Greyback hadn't yet felt the need to turn on him. Remus thought that they were getting along okay for the most part (as well as one could with Greyback), and he felt that Greyback was beginning to trust him, even though he never said so.

To be honest, Remus felt that that had been helped along by Talon's attitude towards him. The second-in-command still made it quite clear that he didn't trust Remus. Greyback, on the other hand, was much too proud to even think about the fact that he might have made a mistake by letting Remus into the pack. When Talon kept questioning Greyback's decision (which had earned Talon several more beatings), it seemed like Greyback became even more determined to accept Remus as one of them.

It had all been too easy, getting on Greyback's good side, and that thought made Remus more and more anxious as the days passed. He knew the full moon was approaching - along with whatever test Greyback had planned for him - but exactly when it was, Remus couldn't say. He had long since lost track of the days, and from his cell, he hadn't been able to see the moon to tell how large it was getting.

This was bad. Remus knew Dumbledore had been expecting him to make contact with him in the days leading up to the full moon. Dumbledore was going to have the Wolfsbane potion waiting for him. They had decided that Remus going through a transformation with the rest of the pack would be much too dangerous without it. Greyback didn't approve of the use of the Wolfsbane, and he would be furious if he knew Remus was still using it, but Remus would much rather keep his mind and accept whatever consequences may come from that. Greyback liked for his pack to run wild during the full moon, and Remus would never forgive himself if he ended up biting or hurting someone as a result.

It had been a little hard, however, to keep in contact with Dumbledore when he was locked in a cell. They hadn't foreseen that. Remus knew how to get out if he must - the key above the door was still there, as if waiting for him - but he preferred not to take the chance until it was absolutely necessary.

The most important thing at the moment was getting through Greyback's test. Without a doubt, Remus would need Dumbledore's help with that, but Greyback hadn't even mentioned it yet. Until he did, Remus didn't want to risk sneaking out to alert Dumbledore. If he got caught, this would all be over. There would be no second chances.

The answer to Remus's questions, however, would come sooner than he thought.

Early one evening, Remus laid on his bed, staring around at the shack like always. He had already taken to counting the boards in the walls, ceiling, and floor, and out of desperation, sometimes he even counted the nails to pass the time. Today, he had moved on to counting the bars that made up the cells.

Small beams of sunlight snuck through the boards over the windows and they moved along the walls, signaling the passing of the day. At the moment, Remus was looking forward to dinner. Even watching Greyback devour innocent prey was preferable to lying here, counting boards and bars until he went insane. Remus wondered how much longer that would take - until he went insane.

Much too soon, Remus heard the door to his shack opening. He immediately sat up, wondering what was happening. It was too early for dinner; he knew from instinct that their next meal was least another hour away.

Greyback stood in the doorway, the dying sun outside outlining his form. He strode in, reached for the key above the door, and then turned back towards Remus. "Up," he ordered.

Remus got off his bed, his heart beginning to pound. He swallowed, trying to keep his voice from shaking. "Sir? It isn't dinner time yet."

Greyback slid the key into the lock of the cell and opened it. "No," he said, pulling the door open and standing aside. "There's something we have to do before dinner tonight."

His breathing growing rapid, Remus stepped out of his cell. Greyback had said that Remus wouldn't know when his test was coming, but that it was coming. This couldn't be it, could it? He wouldn't expect Remus to do something without any warning whatsoever, would he? Remus thought he would have at least a few hours to prepare - hopefully long enough to alert Dumbledore beforehand.

If he didn't have the time beforehand to prepare, Remus knew that depending on what it was, Dumbledore would probably want him to quit. To get out of there somehow, as soon as he could. But then that would make the past several weeks completely pointless, and Remus was determined to not let his time here be in vain.

When Greyback motioned towards the door, Remus exited the shack and descended the steps. The sun was indeed setting, making its way towards the horizon, and filling the forest with pale orangey light. This emphasized the bright orange, red, and yellow hues that were taking over the trees, making the entire forest almost painful to look at.

If this wasn't his test, Remus could only think of one other thing that would cause Greyback to break his routine. However, Remus didn't think that tonight was the full moon. He had lost track of time, yes, but he could usually feel the transformation coming all day beforehand.

"Sir?" Remus asked, trying to sound as nonchalant as he could. "It's not the full moon tonight, is it? I don't _think _it is, but…"

"You've lost track of time?" Greyback asked, emerging from the shack next.

Remus nodded.

"All my followers do at first," Greyback said, leading Remus towards the back of the colony. It was the same walk they took every day to every single meal. "It's hard for you to keep track of time at the moment, I know. But no. The full moon is tomorrow."

Remus had known the transformation was coming, but to know it was so close made him even more nervous than he already was. He still had to contact Dumbledore to get the Wolfsbane, and his time was quickly running out. The very real possibility that he might have to go through this transformation without it scared him out of his wits.

"If everything goes well," Greyback went on as they continued their walk, "your days in the cell will come to an end very soon. Then again, if things don't go well, they'll come to an end anyway."

So this was his test! Remus's heart began to beat even faster and his legs wobbled slightly as they went. But he couldn't let it show. He couldn't let Greyback see how nervous he was. He wouldn't.

Greyback seemed to know anyway. "As I've told you, Remus," he said, "if you are loyal to me, you have absolutely nothing to fear."

And that was exactly what worried Remus.

Greyback led Remus through the woods, past the small clearing where they usually stopped to eat. They walked past the mouth of the cave and even deeper into the woods. Remus had never been here, had never gone past the cave before, and his mind kept racing with possibilities. At least it _wasn't _a full moon, because he could only imagine what sorts of chaos he would be headed for then. So what was this all about?

Eventually, the trees started to grow sparse and small cottages began appearing in the distance. It almost reminded Remus of where he had lived as a child, and that made a very uncomfortable feeling settle in his stomach. He tried not to think about what this could mean. There was no sense in worrying until he found out what the test actually was.

Greyback and Remus stayed in the protection of the woods, skirting around the small village they had come across. Remus followed, trying his best to remain calm, to not let Greyback know how absolutely scared he really was.

Finally, Greyback slowed, peering through the trees at the cottage closest to them. It was a particularly small stone cottage, but it looked very friendly and welcoming just the same. A pillar of smoke rose from the chimney and little bursts of bright blue flowers grew out of the flower boxes under each window.

Remus thought he could see a woman through the front window. She looked fairly young, perhaps in her twenties, and Remus imagined that she was cleaning the front room of the cottage. A large smile was present on her face the entire time. She had absolutely no idea that she was being watched by perhaps the most savage werewolf in the world.

"The Farris family," Greyback said, gesturing to the humble dwelling. "A fairly young married couple. They have a boy, Justin, who's just turned seven."

Remus's hand found the tree nearest him and he grabbed it, his fingers tightening around the rough bark. He tried to keep his breathing quiet, but it was impossible now. He thought he could see what Greyback had in mind, and Remus had already decided that he wouldn't do it. Not if it involved a little boy in any way. He wouldn't. For a moment, Remus thought back to his conversation with Sirius, about how he had called this entire thing ludicrous and begged Remus to change his mind. Why on earth hadn't he listened to the mangy mutt?

"I know the father," Greyback explained, breaking Remus from his overwhelming thoughts. "I had…an altercation with him not long ago - not long before you joined us. He called me a monster." Greyback threw back his head and laughed, that cruel, evil, mocking sound that made Remus's skin crawl. "So I had planned on biting the boy this coming full moon. We'll see how his father feels about us _monsters _when his little boy _is _one."

Greyback stopped then, almost as if he was waiting for Remus to say something. Remus didn't. His mind was blank, and he didn't think he could say anything without giving away his fear.

"But I thought," Greyback said casually, as if they weren't talking about completely changing the life of an innocent child, "that this would be the perfect opportunity for you to prove yourself to me." Greyback had been eyeing the cottage, but he turned to face Remus now, trying to discern how the younger werewolf was feeling. "This is an honor I'm giving you. I don't normally give my prey to my subordinates, but tomorrow night at this very time, we will position ourselves here. Once we transform, _you _will bite the boy."

Remus had been expecting that, but once Greyback said it, he could feel the bile rising inside him. Remus's throat burned with it and he thought he was going to be sick. He was suddenly thankful that Greyback had chosen to do this before a meal. If Remus had eaten anything recently, he knew he would have just lost it.

Seeming to sense his reservations, Greyback said, "They deserve it, Remus. They do. For the way they feel about us, for the way they look down on us, for the way they _treat _us. Like we're some kind of _disease_. They have absolutely no idea what it's like to be a werewolf. None at all. So it's time they found out."

Remus's eyes went from Greyback's to the cottage behind him. The woman inside had lit a lamp now that the daylight was quickly dying. She had brown hair and was laughing about something, talking to someone inside that Remus couldn't see.

Greyback was still watching him expectantly, waiting for an answer. At the moment, Remus had little choice. If he told Greyback he wouldn't do it, Greyback would kill him at once. There was absolutely no way in hell that Remus _would _do it, but he couldn't let Greyback know that.

Remus swallowed, glancing at Greyback again. He nodded, and even though he felt worse with every word, he said, "I'll do it."

Greyback looked pleased, that horrible grin twisting itself over his face again. "I knew you would." He took a few steps closer to Remus, looking down his nose at him. "You've been very loyal to me so far. In your time here, you've never once questioned me and you've never once defied me. Not a single one of my followers has ever been this well behaved this soon. Not even Edmund. Most of them, when they first come here, are defiant and disobedient. They like to test me to see how much they can get away with, but not you.

"After tomorrow night, I may make you even higher than an epsilon." Pausing, Greyback looked him up and down, seeming to devour Remus with his eyes. "Your actions aren't that of a zeta," Greyback added, his voice turning into a growl. "I think you've proved that you deserve far more than this. Yes. I think you'd make a fine delta, which is one step up from an epsilon."

Remus looked down at his shoes, which he knew he was supposed to do when Greyback praised him. "Thank you, sir," he whispered.

Greyback nodded, continuing to look very pleased with both himself and Remus as well. "Come. It's dinner time." Without another word, Greyback turned, beginning to walk back through the woods the way they had come.

Remus stayed put for a moment, watching the cottage beyond. He didn't want to follow Greyback. Not now, not ever again. At the moment, Remus's stomach was twisted in so many knots and doing so many somersaults, he couldn't even think about eating. What he almost felt like doing was leaving. Just turning and walking away. Now was his chance, but he knew he couldn't. Not just yet.

That was when Remus realized that he could feel tears prickling at his eyes. He almost wanted to give in to the feeling, to sit down and to let the tears come, but he couldn't do that either. His mission here wasn't over.

Clenching his hands into fists, Remus started back through the woods, hurrying to catch up to Greyback. Remus couldn't even believe that Greyback had let him out of his sight. Ever since he got here, whenever he wasn't in his cell, Greyback always liked for Remus to stay visible. Greyback obviously did trust him now, which made Remus even more certain that he had to keep up this charade for as long as possible.

Dinner that evening seemed to take forever. Remus wasn't the least bit interested in eating; he felt much too ill. He just wanted to get back to his cell. He needed a minute to himself and then he had to get into contact with Dumbledore, to tell him what it was that Greyback wanted him to do.

Finally, Greyback finished with his own meal, the blood of his prey once again visible on his lips. Remus had long since grown used to the sight, but after everything that had happened today, the blood was something he could have done without. It was almost like it was mocking him, reminding him of what Greyback had planned.

When Remus eventually returned to his cell, Greyback stood just outside his door, watching him through the bars. "Get some sleep tonight, Remus," Greyback told him. "You have a very big day ahead of you tomorrow, but I don't think you have anything to worry about. Your test tomorrow night is really just a formality at this point, isn't it? I know you'll made me proud."

Greyback turned and went, leaving Remus in peace, and it was just in time. As soon as the shack door was closed, Remus's eyes welled up and tears began spilling down his cheeks. Remus always prided himself on keeping his emotions in check, but this was too much. Pretending to be one of Greyback's loyal followers when that couldn't be further from the truth was too much. Living a life of nothing but lies for the last three weeks was too much.

Remus had things to do, but at the moment, he just couldn't think of anything else. He dropped down on the edge of his bed, his head in his hands, and he let himself cry. Something he hadn't done since he had been a little boy.

After nearly an hour, Remus began to pull himself together. The tears had stopped and he wiped his face dry. Truthfully, he felt much better now. His time with Greyback always got him so tense and nervous. He was always waiting for something to happen, for Greyback to turn on him for some reason. Tonight had been even worse, learning what Greyback expected of him. It felt good to break down for once.

Remus got up from his bed, running his hands through his hair and taking a deep breath. He needed to get out of here and get in touch with Dumbledore. Remus's heart pounded with the possibility of getting caught, but he had little choice in the matter. If Remus didn't go now, he would be forced into a horrible position tomorrow night, and there was no way in hell he was going to stand for that.

Climbing up on his toilet, Remus peeked out the window near the ceiling. It was completely dark out and the compound looked to be pretty deserted from what he could see. In the evenings, the pack usually went out on yet another hunt. If daytime hunts were good for the reflexes, nighttime hunts were even more so. The werewolves couldn't rely as much on their sight, but had to pay more attention to their hearing and sense of smell in the dark.

Remus had never been allowed on a midnight hunt. It was easy to lose track of someone in the dark, and Greyback didn't quite trust him that much just yet. This was perfectly fine with Remus, because it gave him the perfect opportunity to slip away.

Stepping down off the toilet, Remus went to the door of his cell. He eyed the key on the nail above the door, which he could just see through the darkness. He took several deep breaths, trying to calm himself. Remus reached his right hand, his wand hand, through the bars. He opened his hand and extended his fingers in the direction of the key. It was much too far for him to reach, but he didn't need to.

Gripping the bars of his cell tightly with his left hand, he focused all of his attention on the key. He let everything else fall from his mind, except for the key and the fact that he needed it to get out of there.

"_Accio key_," Remus whispered harshly. The key ring inched forward on the nail, but then it stopped, the key swinging back and forth lazily. Remus closed his eyes, leaning his forehead against the bars of his cell and taking a few more deep breaths. He could do this. He had to do this, because something else suddenly occurred to him. If Remus didn't bite that boy tomorrow night, then he had no doubt that Greyback would, and Remus wasn't about to let that happen.

"_Accio key_!" Remus tried again, much more forceful than before. The key ring slid off the nail this time, slowing crawling towards him through the air. Remus reached his fingers for it, stretching his arm as much as he could, while keeping his eyes pinned on the key. The metal ring drew closer until Remus finally closed his fingers around it. The key jingled quietly, flopping around on the ring.

Remus grinned and then a laugh escaped him. That felt good. Perhaps the first positive thing he had felt in his godforsaken place. "Never underestimate a determined werewolf, Fenrir," Remus spoke aloud to the empty shack. "That was your first mistake."

Unlocking his cell door, Remus slid the door open as quietly as he could. Greyback had sensitive hearing, even more so than the other werewolves, and there was no telling where Greyback was at the moment. Sometimes he went out on the midnight hunts, but sometimes he didn't. One could never tell with him.

Replacing the key on the nail above the door, Remus went to the cell across from his. All of the other cells in the room were unused at the moment, so they stood empty and open. Remus stepped up on the toilet of this cell, raising himself up on his tiptoes and peering through the window near the ceiling. It, too, had been boarded up, but one of the boards was missing, providing Remus with the perfect view of Greyback's shack.

The shack itself appeared dark, suggesting that Greyback had indeed gone out on the hunt. He probably wanted to warm up for tomorrow night, Remus thought.

Holding his breath, Remus listened for any sounds at all, anything to indicate that there were other werewolves around. The only thing he heard was the incessant chirping of crickets.

Stepping down off the toilet, Remus grabbed the pillow off of the cot next to him. He went back to his own cell, pulling back the blanket on his bed. He fluffed up the pillow he held, placed it in the center of the bed, and then pulled the cover back over it. Hopefully, it would be enough to fool anyone that decided to look in on him.

Leaving his cell once more, Remus pulled the door closed as carefully as he could. When the lock finally clicked into place, he went to the door of the shack. He opened it just a crack and paused, waiting for any sign of life or any sound at all.

All was silent and still, so Remus emerged out onto the top step, closing the door behind him. He stepped to the ground and pressed himself into the wall of the shack, sneaking around the corner, just like he had done when he'd arrived three weeks ago.

The path into the woods was clear. Pushing himself away from the shack, Remus ran for it, into the safe cover of the trees. When he found a rather large tree, he ducked behind it and then grabbed it, catching his breath. He looked back towards the compound. Not a soul moved.

Confident that he had gotten away undetected, Remus Disapparated.

_To be continued…_


	4. Chapter 4: The Choice

_Author's note: Thank you to those who have reviewed already. Your kind words mean so much to me, and I'm so glad that people are enjoying this._

_For those who are curious, this story is already completed. It stands at twenty-five chapters, and I've been posting about a chapter a day, so you'll be able to read the whole thing soon._

**Love Sees More 3: Greyback's Pack**

Chapter 4 - The Choice

Number twelve, Grimmauld Place wasn't exactly the most welcoming house in the entire world. Despite their best efforts to clean it last year, it remained dirty and musty, and there was still the odd creature or two lurking in the nooks and crannies. Remus, however, wouldn't have wanted to be anywhere else in that moment.

It had only been his home for a little over a year, but it had seemed much longer than that. Other than his childhood home, it was the only place Remus had lived where it felt like he truly belonged. The only place where he didn't have to worry about what people thought of him. The only place that accepted him the way he was.

As soon as he stepped over the threshold, it felt like the entire house was hugging him, welcoming him home. He had been gone for three weeks, but it felt much longer than that. It felt like it might have been years, in fact, and it felt so good to be back.

Remus closed the door behind him and let out a heavy breath. He grasped the doorknob tightly and leaned into the door, still trying to calm himself after everything that had happened. He stood there for nearly five minutes, not moving, just reabsorbing the feel of the house. Remus was actually surprised the house was still quiet; he had been expecting Sirius to come running the moment he heard someone enter the house.

"Padfoot?" Remus called. More silence met his ears. Remus frowned and tried again, louder this time. "Padfoot?"

That did it. Footsteps pounded up the kitchen stairs, sounding vaguely like a herd of elephants. When Sirius emerged into the entryway, he was going so fast, he nearly toppled over. He had to grab onto the wall to steady himself.

When he straightened up, he stared wide-eyed at Remus. Bright blue eyes met deeper blue for the first time in three weeks…which felt much longer to both of them. No one moved a muscle.

Sirius almost couldn't believe the state that his best friend was in. He was messy, rumpled, dirty, and he looked thinner than Sirius could ever remember seeing him. Even when he wasn't working (which was most of the time), he'd never been this thin before. Remus's robes were always in a state of disrepair, but he at least liked to be clean and presentable. He was just an absolute mess now - nothing at all like he usually was.

"Moony," Sirius breathed. "I didn't…hear you come in. And then you called for me and…I wasn't sure if I heard you or not. Thought I might be imagining things." He laughed nervously. This felt even more awkward than when they had met after all those years in the Shrieking Shack. "I missed you."

Remus closed his eyes, still pressed up against the front door. "Me, too."

A small smile appeared on Sirius's lips then, and he stepped forward. He reached his arms out, trying to pull Remus into a hug, but the werewolf flinched away. Sirius pulled back like he'd been burned, and Remus stared down at the floor, pressing himself into the door as hard as he could.

"Moony…"

Remus shook his head and pleaded, "I can't, okay? Not right now." He looked up at his best friend again, a look of deep hurt on Sirius's face. "I'm sorry," Remus apologized. "It's not you, it's me. The only person to touch me in the last three weeks has been Greyback. Anyone else touching me right now just makes me think it's him." Remus swallowed hard, shivered, and stepped around Sirius and further into the entranceway.

"I'm not Greyback."

"I didn't say you were."

Sirius watched him carefully, not saying anything for a long time. "He didn't…do anything crazy to you, did he?" Sirius's voice hovered on anger.

"No," Remus whispered. "Nothing like that. He's actually been _nice _to me. As nice as I think he's capable of being, anyway. It's just…" He broke off, rubbing at his temples like he was getting a headache. "You have no idea how much that man - _werewolf disgusts _me. He is, without a doubt, the vilest creature I've ever had the unfortunate experience of coming across. I can barely stand to _look _at him…and the smell! God, Sirius, the _smell_. I mean, you thought you were nasty after Azkaban, but it's absolutely nothing - _nothing _- compared to what Greyback is like. He _chooses _to live that way and then _wonders _why people treat him like a _disease_!" Remus laughed, sounding a bit hysterical. It seemed like everything he had thought in the last three weeks was suddenly pouring out of him, and he couldn't (or didn't want to) stop it. "That's one of his favorite expressions - that people treat him like a disease."

Sirius watched him closely, his eyes following Remus as he paced the entrance hall. He wasn't quite sure what to say; he had never seen Remus this agitated before, and that scared him.

"And you want to know what the worst part of it is?" Remus asked. "It's this _pretending_. Pretending that I'm loyally following him when that couldn't be further from the truth. Pretending that I don't want to be sick at the sight of him. Pretending that…that I…" Remus stopped and shook his head, not quite ready to even repeat what it was Greyback wanted him to do.

Remus felt tears prickling at his eyes, but he refused to cry again. He had wasted enough time on that back in his cell at the compound. If he was going back at all, he had to return before Greyback came to wake him for breakfast. That didn't give him a whole lot of time…not as much as he would have liked. Then again, would any amount of time be enough?

Now that he was back at Grimmauld Place again, a small part of Remus was seriously considering never going back to that hellhole. But he had given his word to Dumbledore that he would try his hardest to get as much information as he could. If he passed Greyback's test, there was no telling what he would reveal to Remus. He knew his time at the compound wasn't over - wouldn't be over until he was satisfied that he had gotten every bit of information possible out of Greyback.

Remus, however, was tired. He hadn't really realized it until he had stepped into number twelve, Grimmauld Place. Even though he still felt like he was tied up in a million knots, just being here made him feel better. He must have been running on pure adrenaline, because now that he had calmed down a bit, his exhaustion seemed to hit him like a ton of bricks. He wanted nothing more than to trudge upstairs, take a nice hot bath, and crawl into his bed (not that ruddy cot at the compound), but that was entirely out of the question.

Unable to remain on his feet anymore, Remus grabbed the railing of the stairs leading up to the first floor. He sat down hard on the third riser, leaning heavily into the wall and closing his eyes.

Neither he nor Sirius said anything for the longest time. It was so quiet that Remus hovered on the edge of sleep, thinking that sitting on a set of stairs was a million times better than the "bed" that Greyback had provided him with.

"Good lord, Moony," Sirius broke the silence, taking a few steps closer to his friend. He almost had the urge to put a hand on Remus's shoulder, but knew that wouldn't be welcome at the moment. "I didn't…I thought you said you knew what you were getting yourself into."

Remus cracked an eye open, giving Sirius a piecing look. "And what's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing," Sirius said defensively. "I'm just thrilled to see you, all right? You've been gone for three weeks and one day, and I was worried in case you couldn't tell. I've been wondering if maybe Greyback just killed you the moment you got there."

"I would have come earlier if I could have," Remus argued. "Is being locked in a cell a good enough reason for not doing so?" Remus pushed himself to his feet and paced back towards the other end of the hall. Being too close to Sirius was making him…uneasy.

"What?"

"You heard."

"He's…he's keeping you locked up?"

"He doesn't trust me completely yet, Sirius," Remus hissed. "Why would he? I just show up out of the blue, wanting to join him - as you've said, Greyback isn't a moron. I have to _prove _myself first." He began to pace back and forth in the foyer. Now that he had some space to walk around in, he seemed unable to stay still.

Sirius blinked wearily. "By doing what?"

Remus sighed heavily, staring up at the ceiling. "Can we Floo Albus first? I'd rather tell it to the both of you at the same time instead of having to repeat it."

Sirius didn't exactly need Remus to explain anything then. He could tell…by the look on Remus's face and his tone of voice that it wasn't good. Sirius's mind raced with all of the possibilities, but a couple stuck out in his mind very prominently.

"Tomorrow night's the full moon," Sirius said tonelessly.

"Which is why I had to come tonight," Remus added. "Please believe me when I say that I _couldn't _come before now. It wasn't because I was trying to make you worry or anything…I just couldn't."

"Which is why I thought you'd be _happy _to be here," Sirius said, "and you're not."

"Padfoot," Remus said immediately, "please don't think that. That couldn't be further from the truth. In fact, this is the first time in weeks that I've felt even remotely safe and comfortable."

"Then why won't you let me come within five feet of you?"

"I told you!"

"Or why you're pacing around like a caged animal?"

Remus immediately froze in his place. He frowned deeply and stared at a random spot on the wall, still unable to meet Sirius's eyes. "Sirius. Just don't," Remus said, biting out every word. "I've been through enough hell these last three weeks without you pointing out everything I'm doing wrong now."

"Sorry," Sirius whispered. He took a few steps towards Remus, being careful to stop before he got too close. "I didn't mean anything…I do that a lot, you know. Say things without thinking." Sirius laughed breathlessly in a fruitless attempt to lighten the mood. "I was so excited to see you, but…this isn't quite what I was expecting."

"What were you expecting?"

Sirius shook his head. "I don't know. I guess I knew you wouldn't be _exactly_ the same, but I wasn't expecting you to be completely different either. This isn't you at all and I _still_ miss you - the Remus and I know and love."

A small smile crossed Remus's lips and he suddenly felt much better; he supposed that was something he needed to hear - that he was loved - after what he had been through. Remus ran a hand through his hair, took a deep breath, and continued. "Just know that it has absolutely nothing to do with you, but everything to do with the fact that I've spent the last three weeks in a hellhole, okay? The only social contact I've had has been with werewolves that live like animals. The only physical contact I've had has been with a werewolf that makes me feel sick to my stomach. I know I'm not the same person I was, but try and understand. I just…can't be that same person right now. Not when I have to go back there again. Once this is over…I will be okay. Just not now. I thought you of all people would understand that, because if I remember correctly, you weren't exactly the most sociable person after Azkaban, either."

That forced Sirius into a temporary silence as he considered everything Remus had said. Sirius thought back to that time - the most miserable time of his life - when his only contact had been with dementors. He hadn't really thought about the fact that Remus's time with the werewolves would leave him feeling the same way.

"I…I guess I wasn't, was I?" Sirius asked uncertainly. He knew it was the truth, but it made him feel worse to acknowledge it. He growled in frustration and ran his hands through his hair. "Moony, I'm sorry. I know you've been through hell these last few weeks, and I'm not even trying to understand. I was just so upset over worrying how you were…I didn't even stop to think about what you were going through."

"Don't apologize," Remus said. "To be honest, I didn't even know how much this would affect me. I knew it would be hard, but…this has taken a much bigger emotional toll on me than I thought it would."

Sirius nodded. "All it takes is one look at you to know that."

One of Remus's eyebrows went up. "Thanks, Padfoot."

"Well…" Sirius said sheepishly, "you do look like hell."

"You didn't look so hot after Azkaban yourself."

"Yeah, don't bring that up," Sirius muttered. "Why don't you get yourself cleaned up?"

Remus shook his head. "Can't. If I go back looking significantly cleaner than I did before, that would be somewhat of a giveaway."

"Then how about something to eat?"

Remus's face scrunched up into a look of disgust. "Please, don't even mention food."

"From the looks of you," Sirius argued, "you haven't been eating much."

"If I don't want to eat _live _things," Remus said, "there's little else _to _eat."

"I lived on rats for a while. It's actually not as bad as it sounds…you get used to it after a while."

"I'm not eating anything that's alive when I get it," Remus said flatly. "That's exactly what Greyback would like."

"And I promise you," Sirius said, "that nothing in my kitchen is alive."

"I can't," Remus insisted, that ill look passing over his face again. "I actually need to Floo Albus before it gets too late." He headed for the kitchen stairs, but then he stopped and looked back over his shoulder at Sirius. "Once I do…then maybe you'll understand why I'm not exactly in the mood to eat, either."

Remus disappeared down the stairs, leaving Sirius with his own thoughts. He wasn't entirely sure he wanted to know what Remus was going to tell them. Judging by the look on Remus's face, it wasn't good, and it pained Sirius to see Remus going through any of this at all. Sighing heavily, Sirius forced himself to move, following Remus down into the kitchen.

Nearly an hour later, Sirius had at least gotten Remus to have some tea. The werewolf was sitting at the table in the kitchen, steaming teacup in front of him. Dumbledore sat across from him, listening to everything Remus could possibly remember about the werewolves - their names, ages, how many there were, their ranks, and everything they'd ever told Remus.

Sirius, meanwhile, alternated between leaning against the wall and pacing the floor; he had to seriously control himself to keep from ranting about how ridiculous this entire thing still was. Sirius was, however, relieved that Remus had seemed to calm down at least a little bit in the short time he'd been there.

"Have you tried talking to any of them yet about joining our side?" Dumbledore asked.

Remus shook his head, taking another sip of tea. "I don't think it's wise yet. Not until I've been there longer."

"I agree," Dumbledore said. He paused, looking at the piece of parchment where he had written down all the information on Greyback's werewolves. "Which one would be the easiest to sway, do you think?"

Remus considered this. "Probably Althea. She's the newest other than me - and some poor bloke that didn't make it past his test. She doesn't really know anyone else…too afraid to even try to talk to them. When she found out she wasn't the newest any longer, she sort of…attached herself to me."

"You've got a girlfriend, eh Moony?" Sirius teased.

"Hardly," Remus snorted. "She's young, in her early twenties."

"So is Tonks."

Remus stiffened. "And that obviously didn't work out, so what's your point?"

"Nothing," Sirius insisted, "but she's a _werewolf_." The way Sirius made it sound, that one little fact might have made her the perfect girlfriend.

"Currently in Greyback's pack," Remus reminded. "If it's all right with you, I'm not about to get involved with any of them."

"Did she ever tell you why she joined him?" Dumbledore asked.

Remus was thankful for the distraction from Sirius's questions. "She doesn't like to talk about it very much," Remus said, "but from what I can gather, it was mostly as a last resort. She was eighteen when she was bitten, and her parents didn't want her after that. It was impossible for her to get a job, of course, and she really didn't have anywhere else to go - no other family or anything. It was mostly just coincidence that Greyback found her first."

Dumbledore hummed in response. "She went to Hogwarts. If I had known she was bitten afterwards, I would have been more than willing to help her."

"I suspected as much," Remus replied. "She mentioned that she knew you, although she wouldn't say from where."

"Moony?" Sirius asked. "Is it really a smart idea to go around asking these people if they know Albus?"

"I didn't," Remus said, rolling his eyes. "Do give me some credit. She knows who I am, and she started asking about Albus one day."

Sirius frowned. "She's not suspicious of you then?"

Remus shrugged. "I don't think so. Or if she is, she's at least giving me the benefit of the doubt, since she remembers what it's like to be the new one there. I think she's just thankful to have someone halfway sane to talk to, since all the others have let their seniority go their head." He paused and added, "Like Talon. I'm rather concerned about him. He seems to think I'm a spy," he said sarcastically.

Dumbledore smirked. "But Greyback isn't listening to him?"

"Not at all," Remus replied. "If anything, it's helped my position. If there's one thing Greyback hates, it's being questioned or being told that he's made a mistake. Since it was his decision to let me in, it only infuriates him when Talon makes those accusations."

"But you're still concerned about Talon?"

Remus nodded. "I don't think he's going to trust me no matter _what _I do. I'll have to be extremely careful around him and about anything I say or do potentially getting back to him." Remus paused, staring down at the tea in his mug. "Even after I prove myself."

"Did Greyback tell you what that entails yet?"

Clenching his jaw tightly, Remus nodded. He was beginning to feel sick all over again, not sure if he could even repeat the words. He stood up and walked to the other side of the room, his back to both Dumbledore and Sirius.

"Remus," Dumbledore said, "you know I won't force you to do anything. I told you that before you went. If you'd rather stop right now, just say the word."

Remus shook his head. When he turned back to them, he said, "I can't quit now. I'm sure as hell not going to do what Greyback wants, but I'm not going to quit either. I didn't spend the last three weeks trying to gain Greyback's trust only to give up. Not if there's a convincing way for me to get through this."

After a long moment of silence, Dumbledore said, "You do have to tell me what it is Greyback wants you to do. I can't help you otherwise."

"I know," Remus whispered. He fidgeted, taking a moment to collect his thoughts. Before he could lose his nerve, he quickly said, "There's a boy. Not far from the compound. He's seven. Greyback had an argument with his father and…he wants me to bite the boy. Tomorrow night."

"Oh, bloody hell, no!" Sirius screamed. "I've been quiet through this whole thing and I've let you go and infiltrate those damn werewolves, but we are not having his conversation! It stops right now! I put my foot down at the biting business!"

"I'm not going to do it, Padfoot," Remus said calmly. "There's no need to shout."

Sirius gaped. "But you said…!"

"I said," Remus interrupted, "that I'll do it if there's a _convincing _way to get through this."

"Like we all know," Sirius argued, "Greyback's not an idiot." He suddenly frowned and added, "Well, then again, if he was all that smart, he wouldn't have let you in in the first place…"

"It's his arrogance," Remus supplied. "He's just blinded by the possibility of his pack growing larger, and then he's even more blinded by thinking he isn't capable of making a mistake. It's actually pretty convenient."

"All right," Sirius said, "but he still isn't _entirely _stupid. What in the bloody hell do you mean, 'get through this convincingly'?"

Dumbledore supplied, "I suspected this was what Greyback's test would involve, and I have a plan. We'll need your help, Sirius, but if you're both willing, then I think we can fool Greyback into thinking that Remus has bitten that boy."

Sirius stared at them. "Fool Greyback," he said around a laugh, "right. Well, I still think this entire thing is completely nuts, but let's hear the plan anyway."

"First of all," Dumbledore said, "I want to ensure you that the boy will be perfectly safe. Did Greyback give you his name?"

Remus nodded. "Justin Farris. They live in the village just east of the compound."

"I'll have him moved to a safe location immediately," Dumbledore reassured them. "And then we need a decoy. Someone to drink Polyjuice Potion and pretend to be Justin. Preferably someone who's been around werewolves during a full moon before and knows what to expect from them." He looked at Sirius.

Sirius gave a nervous laugh. "I guess that's where I come in." He made a face and rubbed his hand nervously over the back of his neck. "But so far, so good. Nothing yet to indicate that this entire plan is crazy."

"Yet," Remus mumbled.

"Did I mention that that someone also needs to be an Animagus?" Dumbledore asked sheepishly.

"Yes, I've got that covered too," Sirius said. "But if I'm going to be using Polyjuice Potion, what difference does it make whether I'm an Animagus or not?"

"A great deal of difference, Sirius," Dumbledore said. He hesitated and sighed, getting up from his chair. Taking his time walking around the table, he stared long and hard at both the both of them. "This is the part that I'm not sure either one of you will like."

"Uh oh," Sirius said. "Not exactly the _best _way to start this, is it?" He shared a grim look with Remus.

"In order to convince Greyback of it," Dumbledore continued, "he has to _see _Moony biting that boy."

"No," Remus said immediately. "There has to be another way. Some kind of mind control charm, _something_…"

"If it was just Greyback," Dumbledore explained, "then that would be an option. But with a pack of almost thirty…" He broke off and shook his head. "A mind control charm would be far too complicated to perform on that many people in such a short amount of time. You've already said that they're suspicious of you and with good reason. If any one of them suspects that something isn't right during your test, your entire cover will be blown."

Sirius raised his hand tentatively. "Erm…don't I have a say in all this?"

"No," Remus said.

"Well…" Sirius continued anyway, "you know I love you, Moony, but I didn't exactly think that this would involve me becoming a werewolf. No offense," he added to Remus.

"You won't, Sirius," Dumbledore assured him. "I'm actually surprised that you would think such a thing."

Sirius blinked. "Oh. Well, you were talking about him biting me and all…I didn't know what else to think. Carry on, then."

"'_Carry_ _on_'?" Remus sputtered. "That's all you have to say?"

"Yeah," Sirius said uncertainly. "What else is there?"

"How about that this entire plan is insane?" Remus exclaimed. "Isn't that your favorite expression as of late?"

"Remus," Sirius said calmly, "I trust you and I trust Albus. No, this may not be the safest idea in the world, but when have we ever done anything that's safe anyway?"

Remus opened his mouth to respond, but no sound came out. He suddenly felt sick again and he turned away from the others, staring at the fireplace across the room. He thought at least Sirius of all people would back him up on this.

Silence fell, which Dumbledore eventually broke. "As I was saying, Sirius will be perfectly safe, I assure you. As long as he transforms into Padfoot first, and _then _drinks the Polyjuice Potion. Justin isn't his true form, and as long as the last true form he takes is that of Padfoot, the bite will not affect him. It will be the same as Moony biting him while in his Animagus state."

"No," Remus said again. "I don't care how _safe _you claim he'll be. I'm not going to do this."

"Moony…" Sirius said, "I don't see what the problem is."

Remus rounded on him, his eyes wide and his chest heaving. His hands were clenched into fists at his sides so tightly, his knuckles were turning white. "You don't see what the problem is?" he shouted. "You were the one who was against all of this from the start, and now you don't see what the problem is?"

"No, I don't," Sirius said, keeping his voice quiet. "Do you have any idea how many bites and scratches I got from Moony in my life? If that's what you're worried about…don't be. Besides, you'll have the Wolfsbane, so you'll be in control of what you're doing. I can handle a few bites and scratches."

"Under normal circumstances, yes, you probably could," Remus agreed, "but these are hardly normal circumstances. In case you're forgetting, there's going to be an entire pack of wolves with me who _won't _be using the Wolfsbane. If they suspect that something's not right, they won't hesitate to rip you to pieces themselves."

"So make it look convincing," Sirius said.

"NO!" Remus screamed. He suddenly laughed, sounding a bit crazy. "I can't believe you're okay with this! After everything you said to _me _about not thinking things through and letting certain things cloud my judgment. Maybe you're the one who isn't thinking clearly now. Not all werewolves are like me, Padfoot." He took a few steps towards Sirius, looking him directly in the eye. "Some of them are vicious crazed maniacs when they're in their _human _forms. You have no idea - absolutely none - what they'll be like once the moon is full."

"Like Moony without the Wolfsbane, I suspect," Sirius said nonchalantly. "Only more of them."

"You've never been around that many werewolves," Remus argued. "You may know how to handle yourself around one, but when they're in a pack, it's completely different. The entire mentality is changed."

"If I may," Dumbledore spoke up, "I doubt very much that Greyback would look kindly on anyone interfering with your…test." He said the last word quietly, almost as if he was afraid of using it. "As long as you do make it look convincing, the others will have little need to act."

"How many more times do I have to say it?" Remus cried in exasperation. "I'm not going to do this. I'm not going to _pretend _to bite anyone. It's sadistic and I won't have any part of it. End of story." He shoved his hands in his pockets and walked toward the fire, staring daggers down at the flickering flames.

Sirius approached him, taking a moment to think about what to say. "Moony? Is that what's really bothering you? The fact that you'd have to pretend to bite me? Because I told you…"

"No," Remus interrupted, running a hand through his hair. He still refused to meet Sirius's eyes. "It isn't that. If it was you, it wouldn't be a big deal. But that's just it - I wouldn't be pretending to bite _you_. I would be pretending to bite a _seven year old boy_." He turned, finally facing Sirius and then looking past him to Dumbledore. "That's two years older than I was when I was bitten. I know it won't be real, but…just the _thought_…it disgusts me," he finished flatly.

"But it won't be a seven year old boy," Sirius stressed. "It'll still be me. Try to focus on that - like we're play-fighting like we used to at Hogwarts."

"I know, but…" Remus stopped, shaking his head. "Just why in the hell are you so anxious for me to do this anyway?" he asked, sounding slightly accusing.

Sirius felt his cheeks growing red. "I'm not anxious. You said so yourself that you didn't spend the last three weeks there only to quit. I…I don't want your time there to be in vain, that's all."

Remus let out a heavy breath, crossed his arms over his chest, and stared at the fireplace again. "Nor do I. I keep thinking about what Greyback might tell me once he does trust me. And I want him to trust me so badly I can taste it. He almost does trust me as it is - as much as he can right now. If I pass his test…there's no telling what sorts of information he might share with me."

"Does that mean you'll do it?" Dumbledore asked quietly.

Remus stared at them both for a long time, not answering. When he finally spoke, he said, "I can't believe I'm saying this - I must be completely out of my mind."

"You're doing it for our side, Moony," Sirius said. "Nothing more."

Shifting uncomfortably, Remus controlled the urge to pace again. He hadn't realized when he had gotten this sudden need to keep moving. He supposed it was from sitting in the same cell for so long, and he wanted to ask Sirius if he had experienced the same thing after Azkaban.

"Remus?" Dumbledore asked.

Nor had Remus realized how much his mind kept wandering. In a way, it was hard for him to keep focused on the conversation at hand. He had far too much on his mind at the moment to worry about any one thing.

Remus growled in frustration, directed at both himself and Dumbledore. In a way, he still felt like he was locked in a cage, with both Sirius and Dumbledore watching him, waiting for an answer.

"It'll be getting light soon," Dumbledore said gently, gesturing to the window. "If you're going back at all, you don't have that much time to decide."

"I know!" Remus snarled in frustration. He just desperately wanted for things to be normal again. He wanted to be able to resume his life at Grimmauld Place - to go upstairs, take a shower, and go to bed like he usually would. The last thing he wanted was to go back to the compound and sit in that tiny smelly cell again. The thought of it almost made him crazy.

"You're absolutely sure," Remus asked Dumbledore, "that Sirius will be immune to the bite?"

Dumbledore nodded. "I wouldn't have suggested it otherwise."

Remus considered this, then shut his eyes in defeat. "I am completely out of my mind," he decided, "but fine. It's what you both want, fine."

"It'll be all right, Moony," Sirius said as reassuringly as he could. "It'll be over before you know it - tomorrow night _and _this whole infiltration thing. You'll be able to come home, and we'll have more information and followers for our side - it'll be okay."

So why did Remus feel like he was signing his soul away?

_To be continued..._


	5. Chapter 5: The Insubordinate

**Love Sees More 3: Greyback's Pack**

Chapter 5 - The Insubordinate

All too soon, Remus was back at Greyback's compound. It was the very last place he wanted to be at the moment, especially with tomorrow night's task looming ahead of him. He couldn't believe he had let Sirius and Dumbledore talk him into it; that thought alone almost made him feel like he was going to go crazy, but he tried to push it as far from his mind as possible. There was something else that required his attention right now - getting back into his cell undetected.

It would have been so much easier if he could actually Apparate inside his cell, but Dumbledore didn't think it would be wise. When the compound had been a werewolf colony, there had been anti-Apparition wards over the entire place. If there were still any remnants left of those wards, it could be very dangerous to even attempt Apparition or Disapparition inside of the compound itself. It could very easily lead to splinching, and Remus could just imagine the other werewolves' reactions if they found only part of him there in the morning - or what they'd do to him as a result.

Remus stood at the edge of the forest, his eyes scanning the many shacks and buildings. Everything looked dark and quiet. The only thing he currently heard was the lazy chirping of crickets around him. The rest of the pack had probably already returned from their nightly hunt and were asleep. Or so Remus hoped. He took a deep breath and started creeping back towards his shack, just like he had done on that first night three long weeks ago.

Just then, he heard voices from somewhere towards the back of the colony, in the direction of the cave. Remus's breath caught in his throat, and he temporarily froze in his spot. His heart thudded in his chest before he forced himself to get moving. He sprinted the last several feet to his shack, pressing himself up against the outer wall. He held his breath and waited as the voices drew closer.

"It's absolute rubbish is what it is," said a voice that Remus immediately recognized as Talon's. "Wasting a perfectly good boy like that on Lupin. Greyback's losing it in his old age."

Talon's companion snorted. "Don't let him hear you say that. You've been in enough trouble as it is."

It took Remus a moment, but he finally realized that the second werewolf was Bruno Canin. He was a gamma wolf, just one rank below Talon. They were almost always together, but Remus doubted it was because they liked each other. Rather, Remus suspected that Canin was after Talon's position of Greyback's second-in-command.

"Not for long," Talon said. "There's no way Lupin's going to bite that boy. I mean, can you see him biting _anyone_?"

"Nah. He's too much of a wimp," Canin agreed. "Greyback likes us submissive, yes, but he also likes us to have _some _tenacity. Lupin wouldn't know the meaning of that word if it bit him in the arse."

"Which is why," Talon said, "he's going to fail. And when he does, _I'll _be rewarded for seeing all along what a fake he is. I'll be back on Greyback's good side in no time."

"Er…are you sure about that?" Canin asked. "Greyback doesn't like to be proven wrong, you know."

"I'm not going to rub his face in it or anything!" Talon exclaimed. "But he'll be proud of me for never once trusting Lupin."

"Sure he will," Canin said sarcastically. Before Talon could respond (because Remus suspected he had quite a few things to say to that), Canin went on, "So what are you going to do now?"

A long moment of silence passed and Remus could hear their footsteps drawing ever closer. Remus bit his bottom lip, wondering what he should do. He desperately hoped they wouldn't come around to his side of the building, because if they found him, this would all be over. Everything he had done over the last three weeks would be in vain. Remus pressed himself as hard as he could into the side of the shack, almost imagining that he was blending into it.

"I'm just going to…_rattle _him a bit," Talon finally spoke.

Remus's heart pounded even harder, because Talon sounded impossibly close. He couldn't have been more than ten feet away, just around the corner of the building. Remus didn't dare move, didn't even dare to draw a breath.

"Get him nervous, you know?" Talon continued. "Let him know that I know how limited his time here is, and once everyone is aware of what a liar he…he won't know what hit him." Talon laughed in that sickening way that Remus was sure he had learned from Greyback. "He'll be even more unlikely then to do a satisfactory job tomorrow night."

"Oh, I get it," Canin said. "Give him a bit of…stage fright, hm?"

"Exactly," said Talon, sounding extraordinarily pleased with himself. "Now excuse me for a moment."

The door to Remus's shack squeaked open and Remus silently cursed himself. If only he had arrived ten minutes earlier, because once they found out he was gone, his time here would be over. The last three weeks had been in vain after all. His heart thundered so loudly, he was sure the others would be able to hear it.

After what seemed like one of the longest moments of Remus's life, Talon emerged from the shack. "Well," he said to Canin, "it looks like he did chicken out after all. He's gone."

"What?" Canin asked, sounding slightly disbelieving.

"Lupin's gone," Talon repeated. "Look for yourself - absolutely no sign of him."

A small laugh escaped from Canin. "You're kidding! Greyback is going to be _furious_."

"I know," Talon said, barely able to control his joy. "Dunno what Lupin even came here for in the first place. It was so obvious he didn't belong. I'm going to go tell Greyback that he's gone. Want to come?"

"Of course," Canin said, "and then Greyback will let us _hunt _him down. I can't wait! I can even taste the blood now."

Remus could hear their voices retreating, back towards Greyback's shack. Remus knew he had one of two options. He could either run for the tree line and hope that he could Disapparate before anyone saw him, or he could try and sneak back into his cell and pretend he had no idea what Talon and Canin were on about.

He only had a split second to decide, but the indecision seemed to freeze him to his spot nonetheless. But deep down, Remus still didn't want his time here to be over. He knew he could find out so much more if he stayed, and like he told Dumbledore, he wasn't about to give up just yet.

Holding his breath, Remus stayed pressed into the wall of the building and snuck around the corner. The door to his shack stood wide open, as if waiting for him. Talon and Canin were off in the distance, pounding on the door of Greyback's shack, trying to rouse him. Greyback despised being disturbed in the middle of the night, and that just may buy Remus the time he needed.

As quietly as possible, Remus crept along the building and climbed up the three small stairs to the shack. He reached for the key above the door, unlocked his cell with it, and returned the key to the nail. Remus pulled the extra pillow from his cot and threw it back on the bed in the cell across from his. He reentered his cell and pulled the door closed, which screeched loudly as it went. Remus flinched, but Greyback was currently yelling at the top of his lungs for being disturbed, providing the perfect distraction.

Remus dropped onto his bed and pulled the covers over his head, lying as still as possible. His heart pounded and his breathing was now harsh and heavy, but he tried to calm himself as much as he could. He couldn't quite believe that sneaking back in had been that easy; now he just had to convince Greyback that he had been here the entire time. It was his word against Talon's and considering Greyback's current feelings for his second-in-command, Remus wasn't too worried.

"I'm telling you, Talon," Greyback shouted as they approached Remus's shack, "if this is a false alarm, you are going to be in _very hot water_."

"It's not a false alarm, sir," Talon said, the excitement still evident in his voice. "He's gone. I saw his cell empty."

Their footsteps grew louder until finally, Greyback stomped up the stairs into the shack. Remus still didn't move, pretending to be sound asleep under his covers. The moments seemed to stretch and no one said a thing.

"TALON!" Greyback roared. "Get the hell in here!"

Remus then pretended to wake, stirring and pulling the covers away from his face. He squinted up at Greyback, trying his best to look sleepy and confused. "Sir?" he mumbled.

"Just a moment, Lupin," Greyback said. "I'm having a problem with the help again."

Talon entered the shack next and even in the darkened room, his eyes seemed to bug out of his head at the sight of Remus. Greyback grabbed the back of Talon's neck and shoved him into the bars of Remus's cell.

"Tell me, Talon," Greyback said, "what do you see?"

"L-Lupin."

"Funny, that," Greyback commented, shoving Talon out of the way again. Greyback turned to Remus and explained, "Talon woke me just a few minutes ago, claiming that you, Lupin, had disappeared from your cell." He looked quizzically at Remus. "Do you have any idea why he would say such a thing?"

Remus swallowed, his eyes darting to Talon and back to Greyback. "No, sir. None."

"HE WAS GONE!" Talon cried. "Not more than five minutes ago! HE WAS GONE! Honest, sir."

"CANIN!" Greyback roared next. "Get in here!"

Canin stumbled up the stairs next, looking frightened at all the yelling that had already transpired. "Sir?"

"Did you actually _see _Lupin's cell empty?" Greyback inquired.

"No, sir," Canin answered. "I was outside the entire time…I just know what Talon told me."

Greyback nodded as if he had been expecting that. "That's what I thought. You may go then, Canin. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, sir," Canin said. He shot Talon an apologetic look before he glared at Remus. Then he turned on his heel and was gone.

"It would seem that we have a situation here," Greyback said conversationally. "The word of Talon, my second-in-command, against that of Lupin, a lowly zeta." He grinned, his fanglike teeth shining even in the dark.

Talon still looked pleased with himself, despite the fact that Greyback had just been shouting at him. Perhaps Remus shouldn't have been so certain that Greyback would believe him. As much as Talon was on Greyback's bad side at the moment, he had still been a part of the pack for a lot longer than Remus had; that had to count for something.

Greyback glanced back and forth between Remus and Talon, looking deep in thought. Next, Greyback reached for the key above the door and unlocked Remus's cell with it. "Up," he ordered.

Remus quickly scrambled up from his bed, trying desperately to control his erratic breathing. What if Greyback didn't believe him? What if Greyback had already sided with Talon? What if Remus was now going to be punished for it? Remus longed for that moment when he had made his decision to come back. Why hadn't he just left like he _really _wanted to?

Greyback stalked into his cell and fisted his hands in the front of Remus's robes. He forced Remus back against the wall, pressing himself up against Remus just like he had done that very first night. Greyback watched him closely and then sniffed loudly, as if smelling him.

"Did you leave your cell tonight for any reason?" Greyback growled. "Do keep in mind that I do not tolerate _lies_!"

"No, sir," Remus immediately responded as firmly as he could. He was almost going to elaborate, but he stopped himself; he remembered reading somewhere that liars often added explanations to their lies to make themselves appear more convincing.

"You've been here all night long?" Greyback asked. "Since dinner?"

"Yes, sir."

Greyback suddenly let go of him, turned, and paced back out of the cell. "One of you is clearly lying to me," Greyback said, his eyes going back and forth between Remus and Talon once more. "The question is, which one?"

No one said anything. Remus had expected Talon to defend himself further, but it seemed that he had finally learned to hold his tongue.

Greyback took a few steps closer to Talon. "You know," Greyback said, "I was wondering what in the hell you were even doing in Remus's shack in the middle of the night. You are my beta, and you do have permission to go anywhere in the compound that you like, but why here? What business could you possibly have with Remus that couldn't wait until tomorrow?"

Talon's eyes widened, almost as if he couldn't believe that he was the one now being interrogated. "I…none, sir."

"Then what on earth were you doing in here?" Greyback asked, sounding oddly pleasant.

Remus and Talon both knew the answer to that, but they also both knew that it wasn't one which Greyback would appreciate. Talon didn't respond.

"Answer me," Greyback ordered, his voice growing impatient. When Talon still didn't say anything, Greyback chuckled. "I find it funny. You have more than enough to say when you're not supposed to, but when I order you to speak, you can't think of anything at all." He licked his lips, looked Talon up and down, and then grabbed the front of the younger werewolf's robes. "You know what I think?" Greyback snarled. "I think you had a very good reason for being in here. Perhaps you wanted to cause some…_trouble _for Remus before his big test, hm?"

"No, sir!"

Greyback shook his head. "I don't believe you. You've hated Remus from the moment he's set foot here and you've constantly been questioning him and my decision to let him in. This is just more of the same from you, and as I've told you before, if it doesn't stop, I will need to reconsider my decision of making you my second-in-command!"

"Sir," Talon whined, "I'm sorry, but I wasn't lying! He was _gone _just a few minutes ago! Honest! I wouldn't lie about…"

"SILENCE!" Greyback roared, giving Talon shake. Then he pushed Talon back and slammed him into the wall. Remus could feel the entire shack shake beneath his feet from the force. "I did not ask for your opinion, but once again, you felt the need to give it to me anyway!" Greyback's eyes were wide, and Remus didn't think he had ever seen Greyback this angry before. Oh, he had lost his temper with a few werewolves during Remus's time there, but never quite as much as this.

If Remus admitted it to himself, a tiny part of him felt entertained with this recent turn of events. Talon had been so certain he was going to get Remus in trouble, but it had backfired. It was oddly satisfying. Then again, Remus hated seeing any of other werewolves punished, even if it was Talon.

"If you can't give me a good reason for being in here," Greyback said, "I have no choice but to believe Remus."

"Sir…I'm your second-in-command! I wouldn't…"

"I said a good reason for being in here!" Greyback interrupted. "Not more of your _sniveling_!"

Talon opened and closed his mouth several times, but nothing came out. He remained silent.

"Very well," Greyback said. He pulled Talon away from the wall and then pushed him once again, this time out the door of the shack. Talon stumbled over the threshold and tumbled down the stairs to the ground. "Go to the mess hall and wait there. I have to think about what I'm going to do with you."

From his position, Remus couldn't see him any longer, but he heard Talon scampering off towards the back of the colony.

Greyback turned to look at Remus once more. Remus hadn't moved from where Greyback had left him; he was still pressed up against the wall of his cell.

"I'm sorry, Remus," Greyback sighed.

Remus's eyes widened; in all of his time here, he had never heard Greyback apologize to anyone for anything. Remus had always assumed Greyback was above such things.

Greyback smiled, as if amused by Remus's expression. He walked over to the cell, placing his hands on the bars. "As I've told you," Greyback said, "you've never once disobeyed or defied me. That does count for something. Edmund, on the other hand, has been misbehaving left and right since you got here. It's actually quite embarrassing to have my second-in-command acting up like this, and it doesn't take a genius to figure out which one of you is lying now."

Remus had to struggle to contain the smile and laugh that threatened to escape him. Instead, he plastered a grateful expression on his face and bowed his head. "Thank you, sir."

"You've still got a few hours left till breakfast," Greyback went on. "Why don't you try and get some more sleep? You do have a long night ahead of you today."

Nodding, Remus moved back towards his bed.

Greyback pulled the cell door closed again, the bars squealing as they went. "Edmund, however, will not be so lucky." That horrible smile was back, twisting itself across Greyback's lips like some horrid insect. "But don't let that concern you. Get some rest."

Greyback left him alone, Remus's heart still pounding hard against his ribs. He took several deep breaths and buried his head in his hands, trying to calm himself. Remus was certain he had been caught, certain that all of his time here had been a waste, certain that he was going to be punished for sneaking out. But somehow, inexplicably, it had turned out in his favor, and Talon was the one who was now facing discipline.

Remus didn't very much sleep at all. What little time he did have left to sleep, he spent worrying about the task that lay ahead of him that night. He did drift off occasionally out of pure exhaustion, but those bits of sleep were few and far between. And even when sleep did come to him, it was plagued with horrific images of what awaited him that night.

Much too soon, Greyback had returned to wake Remus for breakfast. Something, however, was very different about Greyback this morning. He appeared to be in an even fouler mood than usual. Remus wasn't exactly surprised given what had happened with Talon, but Remus sometimes wondered if Greyback was capable of being any angrier than he normally was. Not to mention, Greyback's entire right hand was swollen and covered in blood. Remus was curious as to whether that had anything at all to do with Talon or something else entirely.

"Up," Greyback ordered, retrieving the key and opening Remus's cell door.

Remus did as he was told and followed Greyback to the mess hall just like he did every morning. He didn't dare say a word, not even to inquire about Talon. Remus didn't think that would be a very welcome subject at the moment.

When Remus entered the mess hall, he noticed that Talon wasn't among them. The second-in-command always stood at the front and center of the group, but he was nowhere to be seen. Remus's stomach did a somersault. He definitely disliked Talon, but Remus hadn't wanted anything horrible to happen to him, and especially not because of him.

Greyback entered next, looking around the room to make sure everyone was present. "Good, everyone's here, I see." He started pacing back and forth in front of the group. "As some of you are aware, we had a bit of a situation this morning. Talon made some crazy accusations towards Remus which turned out to be false. As a result, Talon has been demoted."

A murmur of whispers went through the crowd. Several of the werewolves stared at Remus, and he could feel his cheeks growing warm.

"I don't believe I asked any of you to speak!" Greyback yelled. When the voices died down, Greyback continued, "As I was saying, Talon has been demoted, so the position of my second-in-command is open at the moment. Before we get to that, however…come on out, Edmund. Show them what happens when I am deliberately _lied to_!"

Everything was still and silent, but then some of the werewolves in back of the room moved out of the way. It was then that Remus realized that Talon had been in the room the entire time; he had just been at the back of the crowd.

The former second-in-command finally moved to the front of the room, but he was nothing more than a shadow of what he had been just a few short hours ago. When Remus had first joined the pack, Talon stood tall and proud, very happy with the position he held and not afraid to show it. Now, it looked like he had been…destroyed. Remus shivered inwardly at his thoughts, but there was no other word for it.

Talon's dark hair was an absolute mess, sticking up in all directions. Remus tried not to think about the fact that it distinctly reminded him of James and Harry. Talon's robes were a disaster, even more so than usual. Large holes had been torn into the fabric, exposing pale patches of skin. That, however, was not what was so startling. He was also covered in fresh bruises and blood. Talon's left eye was nearly swollen shut, surrounded by a patch of bright red skin. Remus imagined that it would be turning to a sickly shade of purple within the day. His bottom lip had also been torn open, several trails of blood currently drying on his chin. A large pool of blood was also forming under his nose, and Remus wondered if it had been broken.

Talon was hunched over, one arm wrapped around his stomach. His eyes were pinned on the floor, not daring to look up at anyone. Not even to glare at Remus like he normally did.

"Let this be a lesson to all of you," Greyback went on, continuing to stalk back and forth. "I am tired of having to repeat myself, but I see that I must, because some of you have clearly forgotten. _I _decide who is and who is not worthy of being in this pack. I have deemed every single one of you worthy to enter and stay. We have also had those who were _not _worthy, and we all know what happened to them. Right now, Remus is here because _I _say he stays. If there's anyone here who disagrees, please speak up now so that we can clear the air."

No one said anything. No one even moved a muscle. Not even Talon.

"Very good," Greyback hummed happily. "Then I trust that we won't have any more issues like we did this morning." He stopped in front of Talon, gesturing to the younger werewolf. "_This _is what happens when you question me. _This _is what happens when you lie to me! _This _is what happens when you DEFY ME!"

Greyback's voice echoed throughout the mess hall, causing Remus to flinch. He was starting to feel worse by the second, and once again, he wished that he had left the compound when he had had the chance.

"Talon," Greyback said, "tell them what rank you hold now."

Talon's eyes darted up to Greyback and then quickly down to the floor again. "Epsilon," Talon said, his voice nothing more than a whisper.

"Epsilon," Greyback repeated. "Only one rank above our newcomer. How quickly they fall," he said more to himself than to the room. He turned to face Talon again, looking down his nose at him. "And how quickly they rise. At this time tomorrow, Remus may well be above you."

Talon continued to stare down at the floor, which made Greyback grin, nearly every single one of his teeth showing. "Now," Greyback went on, resuming his pacing, "I do, of course, need a new beta. They just don't make them like they used to." He paused and laughed. "I will be thinking very carefully over the next few days which one of you most deserves that position. And please, no sucking up to me before then." Greyback rolled his eyes. "It just makes you look desperate."

Greyback waited for a few moments and then said, "I believe that's all for this morning. Don't forget that Remus is being tested tonight, but I will talk more about that before lunch, so you may all go to breakfast now."

The other werewolves quietly filed out of the mess hall. No one spoke for fear of upsetting Greyback and putting themselves in Talon's position. Talon, meanwhile, still hadn't moved from his spot. He remained hunched over, now rubbing fresh blood away from his nostrils with the sleeve of his robes. Greyback didn't seem to care. He motioned for Remus to follow him and left the shack.

That was when Talon finally looked up at Remus. The eye that wasn't swollen shut was narrowed in hatred. "I know you were gone last night," Talon said, his voice sounding like he had been gargling with broken glass. "Greyback chose not to believe me, but I know the truth. I will find out what you're up to and I will be rewarded when I prove it."

Remus stood up as straight as he could. "I don't know what you think you saw," Remus said nonchalantly, "but I didn't go anywhere last night. It was dark. You must have been imagining things."

"I know what I saw!" Talon said as loudly as he was capable. "You don't fool me for a second."

"I still don't know what you're talking about," Remus said calmly. "I'm not trying to fool anyone." He threw his head back and turned on his heel, following Greyback. Remus wondered when lying had become so easy for him.

Greyback hadn't even waited for him. The older werewolf had already gone into the forest and was currently chasing after some poor unfortunate creature. That made Remus feel slightly better - that Greyback trusted him enough to let him out of his sight more often.

Sighing, Remus found a spot under a tree like he usually did. There was a small raspberry bush nearby, which he pulled a few berries from. He still wasn't feeling very hungry, but he knew it was going to be a long day, and that he should try and keep his strength up at least.

Althea, of course, could always be counted on to keep him company. She licked at her lips as she approached him, looking very pleased with herself. Remus tried not to think about what she could have possibly eaten.

"Hey," she said, plopping down next to him. She took a moment to smooth down her hair and straighten her robes before she continued. "Talon was in _so _much trouble this morning. I was up early and heard Greyback yelling at him. You should have seen it - I don't think I've ever heard Greyback that loud before." She sounded amused.

Remus couldn't keep the smile from spreading across his face, and he wasn't quite sure why. As much as he disliked Talon, and despite the fact that Talon was doing everything in his power to discredit him, Remus still didn't take joy in seeing the werewolf get beaten up. Remus shook his head, trying to focus on the conversation instead. "He accused me of sneaking out last night."

Althea's blue eyes grew large and round, then she frowned. "You didn't, did you?"

Remus smirked. "Would I still be here if I had?"

"No," Althea giggled. "But…what did Talon hope to accomplish from that?"

"No idea," Remus said, shrugging. "Did he ever make crazy accusations like that with you?"

"Well, you know he accused me of being a spy like he does with everyone," Althea said, "but that's about it. He never went running to Greyback, claiming that I snuck out or anything."

"Maybe he's losing it," Remus snickered.

"Remus, he lost it a long time ago, believe me." Almost as an afterthought, she added, "Everyone here does."

"So why are you so normal?"

Althea didn't respond, but she watched him closely. A small breeze flittered through the clearing, lifting her dirty blond hair back from her neck. She shook her head, enjoying the feel of the air along her skin. "Dunno," she finally answered, her eyes closed. "Haven't been here long enough, I suppose."

"Well, I hope you _don't _lose it," Remus said. "Who would I talk to then?"

"That makes two of us," Althea said seriously, meeting his gaze. "_Please _don't go mental on me, all right?"

Remus smiled. "I'll try not to."

"Are you afraid for tonight?" she asked suddenly.

Remus took a deep and shuddering breath. "Out of my mind."

"Have you ever bitten anyone before?"

Remus wondered if perhaps her questions were a result of much more than curiosity. Maybe she was asking questions on Greyback's orders, or maybe she was trying to find out more about him so that she could go to Greyback with it. But for some reason, Remus couldn't lie to her, even though he probably knew that he should. "No," he said. _And I never will if I can help it…at least not for real_, he thought. "Did you…bite anyone before your test?"

Althea shook her head. "Nope, but don't worry. It's no big deal, and then you won't have to sleep in that tiny little cell anymore."

Remus didn't reply, but he thought that sleeping in that cell for the rest of his life was preferable to biting anyone. How on earth could these werewolves bite a child - or anyone, for that matter - and go on with their lives like it had been nothing? Remus couldn't even begin to fathom that. He knew they lived like animals and had little regard for humans, but the idea was still completely foreign to him.

It then occurred to Remus that he had been extremity lucky so far. Getting into the pack and onto Greyback's good side had been far easier than he had anticipated, and he started to wonder when his luck was going to run out.

_To be continued..._


	6. Chapter 6: The Transformation

**Love Sees More 3: Greyback's Pack**

Chapter 6 - The Transformation

By the time Remus returned to his cell after breakfast, he was exhausted and sore. His joints were already aching in anticipation of the full moon, and staying up nearly all night long certainly hadn't helped. He collapsed on his cot and for once, sleep came easily to him.

What felt like only mere minutes after he had laid down, Greyback was waking him again already. "Up," he ordered, unlocking Remus's cell. "It's almost lunch time, and we have a lot to do before the transformation tonight."

Remus's heart did a flip-flop in his chest as he got up from his bed. He rubbed at his face, wishing desperately for just five more minutes of peaceful sleep - of that place where he didn't have to think about the task that lay ahead of him.

"You look tired," Greyback commented as Remus stepped out of his cell.

"I didn't…sleep very well last night," Remus said, wondering if that was a good thing to say or not.

Greyback narrowed his eyes. "Are you _sure _you didn't sneak out last night?"

Remus's own eyes widened, and he suddenly felt awake and alert. "No, sir."

Greyback's expression softened. "I was joking."

A breathless laugh escaped from Remus, partially a result from surprise; he didn't think Greyback ever did such things as make jokes.

"If it makes you feel any better," Greyback said, leading Remus from the shack, "I didn't sleep well either. Not after Talon felt the need to wake me up at the arse crack of dawn for no reason whatsoever."

For reasons he couldn't explain, Remus felt like he should apologize for that. Apologize for what, he wasn't even sure. Maybe for being the reason Talon had been acting up and for causing Greyback to lose his second-in-command. Maybe for being there in the first place when he knew he didn't belong. He couldn't, of course, so he didn't say anything. In the back of his mind, Remus wondered why he even cared so much.

As they walked, Greyback watched him closely. "You're nervous about tonight," he observed.

Remus considered lying, but he didn't think it would do any good. He knew his fear was showing more and more the closer he got to his test, and Greyback wouldn't be happy at all if he knew Remus was lying. "Yes," Remus finally whispered.

Greyback stopped walking then and turned to face Remus who followed suit. The older werewolf's head was tilted and his eyes looked slightly curious. "You've never bitten anyone, either," Greyback said.

Remus swallowed. Why was Greyback telling him these things? From his tone, Greyback clearly already knew the answers. Maybe he was testing Remus, just to see what sorts of answers he would give, so Remus didn't think it a good idea to even attempt to lie. "No, sir," he said quietly.

Greyback grinned, that horrible toothy smile that Remus had grown to hate. "I can tell," Greyback said. "You smell…innocent."

_What other things can he smell? _Remus thought. _Lies, perhaps? _Remus doubted that; surely Greyback would have killed him already if he could, but it still made Remus uncomfortable. If he smelled innocent now, what would he smell like after his test was over? Would Greyback be able to tell that the entire thing was a farce? That he hadn't really turned anyone? Then again, if Greyback was that sensitive to things, he'd certainly know by now that Remus had been doing nothing _but _lying, wouldn't he?

Remus began to suspect that Greyback was only saying things to scare him. They weren't allowed to lie to Greyback, but Greyback probably didn't have any problems lying to them if need be.

"I don't suspect that Dumbledore would have liked for you to be biting people though," Greyback went on, breaking the silence that had fallen. "Not if you were trying to prove your loyalty to him."

"No, sir."

"And look where that's gotten you," Greyback replied, crossing his arms over his chest. "You've been denying yourself blood all this time and for what? For an old fool that drove you away with his distrust. I would never drive any loyal followers away, and unlike Dumbledore, _I_ know the difference," he said haughtily.

_I'm sure you do_, Remus thought sarcastically.

Greyback dropped his arms and stepped closer to Remus, staring down at him. "Nor would I ever deny you blood," Greyback went on. "You don't know what it's like yet. You're too afraid to even try eating any animals. That will all change after tonight. When you turn someone, it's like no other feeling in the world. It's empowering and it's what we are _meant _to do! And there's nothing wrong with biting people, Remus, unlike those human fools would have you believe. It's just our true nature and we are entitled to that. There's no need to be afraid of it. On the contrary, you'll see after tonight how rewarding it is to embrace your true nature."

Greyback suddenly turned and continued on toward the mess hall. Remus hung back, taking a moment to let out the shiver he had been suppressing. He rolled his eyes, then had the insane urge to laugh. Greyback, he was coming to realize, was nothing but a huge fake himself. Remus was pretty sure Greyback didn't have the slightest clue about _anything_, and he only succeeded as alpha wolf through his bullying tactics.

Not for the first time, Remus wondered why anyone would want to live with Greyback. Everyone was terrified of him, of whatever reason he might find to punish them, and they were constantly walking around on eggshells. That wasn't much of a life, but Remus didn't suppose they had much of a life to begin with. Remus always considered himself extremely lucky for the opportunities he had gotten and the friends he'd been able to make. If he'd never had any of that, then he could almost imagine being desperate enough to want to join Greyback, to have just _some _place to belong. Almost.

Remus finally shook his head to clear his thoughts, took a deep breath, and followed Greyback, hoping that any wayward reactions were out of his system. He joined Greyback and the others in the mess hall and waited while Greyback made sure everyone was accounted for.

"Excellent," Greyback hummed, "everyone is here. Now, as I mentioned before breakfast, Remus is being tested tonight. As a reminder to all of you, _no one _is to interfere in his test in any way, shape, or form. This test is for _Remus_, the prey is for _Remus_. If he fails, then _I_ will deal with both him and the prey. I expect all of you to be able to control yourselves. The forest is large and so is the village, and you're all more than capable of finding your own meals. If anyone else so much as lays a single toe on that boy tonight, I can guarantee it'll be the last thing you ever do. Do I make myself clear?"

A murmur of affirmative responses went through the group, and it looked like Dumbledore had been right; he didn't think Greyback would look kindly on anyone interfering with Remus's test. Remus was still scared to death for his best friend, but at least there wouldn't be two dozen hungry werewolves after Sirius if something went wrong, which was somewhat of a relief.

"Very good," Greyback said cheerfully. "Remember that there will be no meeting or proper dinner tonight due to the full moon, so I'll see you all before breakfast tomorrow. Hopefully Remus will still be here-" He broke off and gave Remus a piercing stare. "In fact, I know he will be, and he'll receive his new rank then. But that's all for today, so you may all go to lunch now."

As the mess hall emptied out, Talon came into view. He was hanging around at the back of the room like he had done that morning, apparently too embarrassed to be in front of the others any longer. Just as Remus had suspected, the bruise around Talon's left eye had started to turn a sickening shade of purple, the eye itself nothing more than a mere slit. Talon, however, was grinning.

Greyback turned and left, leaving Remus and Talon in silence. Remus waited; Talon always had words to share with him, and judging by the rather smug look on his face, this time wasn't any exception.

"I guess this is goodbye," Talon finally said. "I _know _you're not going to bite him. You don't have it in you to bite _anyone_, much less a little boy."

For reasons unbeknownst to him, Remus found himself smirking right back. It wasn't Talon's words, of course, but Remus supposed it was just the fact that if everything went according to plan, Talon would be "proven" wrong yet again. Remus's smile deepened in a way that he hoped was similar to Greyback's often disturbing grin. "Just watch me," Remus said flatly. Before Remus's words sank in, he quickly turned on his heel and followed Greyback, leaving Talon staring open-mouthed after him.

Just _pretending _like he was fully intending on biting a seven year old boy made Remus feel worse than he could have possibly imagined. He was beginning to have serious doubts about his ability to even get through this, let alone do so convincingly. Remus knew he had to make it believable for Greyback; he had to make himself appear as vicious and bloodthirsty as possible, but he didn't know if he even had that in him. And even if he could somehow muster the strength to do so, just the thoughts of how he would feel afterwards scared him senseless.

When Remus rejoined Greyback around the corner of the mess hall, the older werewolf was looking rather pleased with himself. It was clear that he was confident in Remus…even if Remus wasn't very confident in himself at the moment.

As they walked into the woods, Greyback said, "Be sure to eat an extra large lunch. As I said, we won't be having our regular dinner tonight due to the full moon, of course. After you pass your test, you'll be free to catch and eat whatever you like in the woods or even the village."

Of course Greyback would want his pack to be extra hungry when they transformed, hence no dinner beforehand. Not that it mattered, because Remus never ate much right before a transformation anyway. He'd learned very early on that a full stomach didn't go well with the pain.

Remus wondered if biting someone was supposed to make him want to eat live things. It certainly seemed that way, with Greyback encouraging him to find a meal in the village afterwards. What would Greyback think if he didn't? Would that be a giveaway? Remus was slowly coming to realize that he didn't know nearly as much about lycanthropy as he thought he did.

"We will transform together," Greyback explained as they walked, "in the area I showed you yesterday. Once you bite the boy, you can go wherever you please and you no longer have to stay with me. You are, however, expected at the mess hall at the regular time tomorrow morning and at all before-meal meetings afterwards. You'll no longer have me to baby-sit you, so be sure to keep track of when the meetings are. It's understandable if something happens and you must miss a meeting, especially after a transformation, but you must have a _reasonable _explanation for doing so." He paused and added, "Being on your death bed, for example, would constitute as being a reasonable explanation."

"What happens if you do miss a meeting without a good enough reason?" Remus asked.

Greyback replied, "Physical punishment and then loss of a rank if it keeps happening. If you get back down to zeta as a result, you're out of the pack. Regular missed meetings or more than three missed meetings in a row without a suitable explanation counts as desertion of the pack. You know what happens then."

"Yes, sir."

Greyback nodded. "So don't miss meetings unless you absolutely have to. I trust you can handle that much."

"Yes, sir."

"Also," Greyback added, "while you may go anywhere, that does not include my shack. It is off-limits at all times unless I invite you in. If I catch you in there when I'm not, that is also grounds for punishment. As for sleeping arrangements, all epsilons sleep in the cave. As I told you yesterday, I believe I will grant you the rank of delta, which means you may sleep anywhere - in any of the other buildings, or the cave itself if you wish, or anywhere else on the grounds. Whatever you find most comfortable."

Had that only been yesterday that Greyback had told Remus about making him a delta? So much had happened since then, it felt like it had been a week or more, not just a day. Then again, days here did seem extremely long. Remus had only been there for three weeks, but he could have sworn it was at least three months.

When they finally entered the woods, Greyback stopped and turned to Remus again. "When you finish with your meal, you may stay out here. Use the time to rest or to prepare for this evening any way you wish. As it gets closer to the transformation, we'll go on to the village."

Remus nodded and watched as Greyback ran off to chase after some poor creature. Remus sighed, leaning heavily against a tree. He still wasn't the least bit hungry, but he knew he should probably try and eat something. He hadn't eaten very much in days and while a full stomach didn't go well with a transformation, neither did a completely empty one. Transformations were taxing enough, and he knew he needed as much strength as possible in order to get through tonight.

Remus picked his way through the woods, eating as many nuts and berries as his stomach would accept. He wondered if would ever truly feel like eating again.

When he'd had enough, Remus found his usual spot underneath a tree. He sat down, leaning up against the trunk, watching as the sun made its way through the sky. As it got closer and closer to the western horizon, Remus's fear and anxiety grew, and he was afraid that he'd be absolutely in a panic pretty soon. This entire thing was insane, and he still couldn't believe he had let Sirius and Dumbledore talk him into this.

Greyback was currently busy lying underneath his own tree, picking at his teeth with one long and yellowed fingernail. If Remus decided not to go through with this, this was probably his last chance to slip away undetected, and he considered doing just that. But he knew he couldn't. He had already given his word to Dumbledore that he was going to do this - that he was going to try and get as much information out of Greyback as possible. He couldn't quit yet.

So Remus waited, closing his eyes and trying his best to forget everything that he had to do. He was so exhausted, sleep even came to him once or twice, blissfully transporting him to that place where he didn't have to think any longer.

All too soon, Greyback woke him once again, ordering Remus to stand up and to follow him. Remus did as he was told, his movements almost seeming mechanical at this point. The entire thing even seemed unreal to him. He wasn't following Greyback to a village so that he could pretend to bite a little boy once he transformed. He just wasn't.

But he was.

When they finally got to the village, Greyback led him to the tree they had been at yesterday - the large one that stood across from the Farris's cottage, with only a few smaller trees in between. About the only thought that comforted Remus at the moment was knowing that Justin was far away from there; Dumbledore had taken the little boy to a safe place where no werewolf would be able to get to him. If nothing else came out of this, at least Remus had saved Justin from ever knowing what lycanthropy was like.

The curtains had been drawn over the cottage's windows, but bright golden lamplight glowed behind them. Remus was curious as to whether Sirius was there yet, and perhaps Dumbledore, waiting for that evening's events to begin. Justin's parents were certainly there also, being an integral part of Dumbledore's plan. Remus wondered if they were nervous at all, but he decided they were probably more relieved at this point, since their son was safe.

It was then that Remus noticed that several other werewolves from the pack had gathered around the area. It almost seemed like they were waiting for a show, excited to see a little boy turned. It made Remus sick.

Greyback turned and sat down, leaning up against a tree trunk and watching the cottage closely. He motioned for Remus to join him. "Sit down," Greyback said. "Nothing to do now but wait."

So, Remus sat down as well, pulling his knees up to his chest and wrapping his arms around himself, trying offer himself just a little bit of comfort. He wasn't so sure he wanted to do this anymore. Actually, he had never been all that sure, but now that it was so close, the fear was growing to be unbearable. It was making his throat tight, and he was having a hard time even breathing. His heart pounded faster and louder than he could ever remember, and Remus was sure Greyback would be able to hear it. Despite the cool autumn breeze, Remus was also sweating, his already dirty robes clinging to his sticky back uncomfortably. Merlin, what he wouldn't give for a shower.

"Sir," Remus asked, hoping his voice didn't shake too much, "what if the boy doesn't come out?" Remus already knew, of course, that Sirius was supposed to come out not long after the transformation, but Remus decided that asking such questions couldn't hurt. Anything to make it look like he _didn't _know what would happen - to put on a good show for Greyback.

"You break the door down if you have to," Greyback ordered. "And feel free to bite the parents too if they get in your way. You do anything and everything to get to that boy, understood?"

"Yes, sir," Remus said. He had absolutely no intention of even lying a toe on either of the boy's parents, but Greyback didn't know that.

"Be sure you _don't _kill them, however," Greyback said. "The entire purpose of this is to make them know what it's like to be a werewolf. So they know what it's like to suffer every month from something they have no control over. See how they like it then."

Remus simply nodded, his throat too tight for him to speak at all. He was suddenly sorry he had asked anything. It had only served to get Greyback started on one of his rants again, and that was the last thing Remus wanted to listen to.

The sun continued to move across the sky, making its way down toward the horizon. The light began to die, filling the forest with the orangish hues of sunset.

To try and take his mind off the task at hand, Remus directed his thoughts to his best friend. He was curious as to whether Sirius was afraid at all. He'd insist he wasn't, but sometimes Remus knew better. That was the way Sirius was; he always pretended he wasn't scared when deep down, he was terrified. Last night, Sirius had told him this wouldn't be a big deal, but was that how he really felt? Was he only pretending? Acting like this was nothing so that it might be easier for Remus?

Perhaps even Remus had been lying to himself all along. He was afraid, first and foremost, of pretending to bite a little boy. That thought frightened him like no other, but what he hadn't wanted to admit was that he was terrified of hurting his best friend in the process. Remus knew he had to make this convincing. If he didn't, his entire cover would be blown, and then Merlin only knew what Greyback might do to the both of them. What if Remus made it a little too convincing? What if the taste of blood made Moony crazy and he wouldn't be able to stop? Remus had taken the Wolfsbane last night so he would be able to keep his mind, but that didn't mean that the wolf still wouldn't try to influence him.

Why on earth had he ever agreed to this?

Remus's mind was so preoccupied with his thoughts that he didn't even notice it had gotten dark. Not until the very first ripples of pain ran up his spine. His mouth opened, but no sound came out. Instead, he sucked in a harsh breath and stiffened, his hands forming into fists.

Out of the corner of his eye, Remus saw Greyback's body going rigid from the first throes of the transformation as well. Remus closed his eyes then, trying to forget the fact that he was transforming in the middle of an open forest with Greyback of all people. This was so careless and went against everything Remus had promised himself. When he was young and stupid, running wild during a transformation had been fine, but now…even with the Wolfsbane, there was the possibility of something happening that Remus would never be able to forgive himself for. He didn't want to be here. He wanted to be back in the safety of number twelve, Grimmauld Place, with Padfoot beside him. Not Greyback, the most savage werewolf in the world.

Remus curled in on himself and slowly lowered his body to the soft forest floor, cushioned by grass and leaves. At least it was much more comfortable here than in the stone basement at Sirius's house. Remus was grateful for that much.

One of his hands opened and then closed again around a handful of fallen leaves. They crunched softly under his grasp, and he could smell them - the smell of death. Remus had loved that smell so much, but now, it only seemed like it was mocking him - reminding him of what he still had to do.

He screamed then, but whether it was out of anger and frustration or out of pain, he wasn't quite sure. He wasn't even sure where his emotional pain ended and his physical pain began anymore. It all seemed to have intermingled into one giant ball of hurt, raging inside him. That scared him. What he didn't let himself feel, the wolf certainly always did, and then it came out when the wolf came out. The last three weeks had forced Remus to suppress his feelings so much, and now he was certainly going to pay for that. Or someone would, anyway.

Remus twisted over onto his back, his limbs flailing and then reforming. He tried to ignore the yells from the other werewolves around him, concentrating on himself instead. He just needed to get through the transformation, and then he would worry about the task at hand. One thing at a time, because worrying about everything all at once was only serving to amplify the pain, he was sure.

Remus's back arched, pain running up and down his spine and out through his limbs. He threw his head back and screamed again, but then something occurred to him - an almost comforting thought. Maybe Sirius - or perhaps he was Padfoot already - could hear him. That didn't quite make him feel so alone; Sirius was here, and he wasn't very far away. Maybe he was even looking out the window of the cottage, trying to find Remus in the darkness.

"Padfoot," Remus whispered, and then he turned over on his side again. He shut his eyes as tightly as he could as the last spasms of the transformation ripped through his body - Moony's body. The pain began to subside, leaving Remus panting for air, his mind slowly turning to the next part of the plan once again.

Everything was quiet. The werewolves were resting for a moment, recovering from the pain of the transformation. The only things Moony could hear were the soft autumn breeze, and the relentless chirping of crickets.

Moony slowly opened his eyes, finding the golden lamplight of the cottage, only slightly obscured by leaves and the trunks of trees. The minutes seemed to stretch, and Moony began to hope that perhaps the transformation had killed Greyback. He hadn't heard a peep from the older werewolf and didn't dare look in his direction. He just wanted to forget that Greyback even existed.

Something squealed, and Moony's heart thudded when he realized it was the door to the cottage. It opened just a crack, spilling a pillar of gold light across the forest floor. Moony swallowed and then he saw him - Justin. _No, it's Padfoot. Padfoot. _That was what Remus had to force himself to remember, otherwise he would never get through this.

Justin didn't look unlike Remus as a little boy. He was rather small, even for seven. His hair was brown, but darker than Remus's, appearing almost black in the gloom of the night. That sort of helped, in fact - just something else to remind Remus that this was _Sirius_.

The boy stepped out onto the porch of the small cottage, appearing to just be taking in the night. He looked up at the sky, at the full moon hanging above them, then back down towards the woods. Remus was sure he imagined it, but he almost thought that their eyes connected. Then Justin shook his head, letting his shoulder-length hair flop around his shoulders. That gesture was _so _Sirius, and that made it easier, too. Remus felt Moony's lips curling up into a smile.

Moony wondered if Greyback would think it suspicious - the very boy he was supposed to bite suddenly waltzing out into his yard immediately after the transformation. Greyback, however, didn't seem to care. He had made his way over to Remus, prodding against Remus's back with his nose to alert him to the prey. Greyback's mind was probably too animalistic at that point to worry about such "coincidences".

Moony turned over onto his stomach, getting his feet on the ground. He pushed himself up and shook his body, trying to divest his fur of a few clinging leaves and blades of grass. Greyback nudged him again, and Moony growled. If Greyback so much as touched him again, Remus thought he'd feel like ripping his nose off, consequences be damned. This was hard enough without Greyback hovering over him like this. But Greyback seemed pleased; the entire point of this was to make Justin suffer, so growling, irritable Moony was good.

It was then that Remus realized just how large Greyback was, not just in human form, but in his wolf form as well. Moony's head only came up to Greyback's hulking shoulders, which was more than a little intimidating. If Remus didn't do a convincing job of this and Greyback decided to attack him for it, Moony wouldn't have much of a chance at all.

Greyback growled, his yellow eyes narrowed and his teeth bared. He threw his head in the direction of the cottage, making it clear that he wanted Remus to go now. Moony stalked over to the very edge of the tree line, trying his best to appear confident, even though his legs felt like jelly. He could hear Greyback not far behind him, watching his every move. Merlin, did he have to stand so close?

Remus had never been around other werewolves during a transformation before, and he realized for the first time just how territorial he felt. He didn't like Greyback hovering around him one bit. Remus had never felt that way with Padfoot or any of the other Marauders, so it must have been strictly a werewolf thing. He kept getting the urge to snarl in Greyback's direction and claw at him, but he knew that wouldn't be very smart.

Justin had descended the steps from the porch, wandering along the edge of the flower bed against the side of the house. His head was directed up, apparently trying to get a good look at the full moon through the thick growth of trees overhead.

Is that how Remus had looked as little boy? Wandering around outside, unaware that his entire life had been about to change? But no, this wasn't like that at all. Justin was somewhere safe. This was Sirius, who was fully prepared for and protected from what was going to happen.

Remus tried desperately to hold on to that thought as he lowered himself toward the ground, trying to look as much like a werewolf stalking its prey as possible. He crept along the forest floor, blades of grass dragging along the underside of Moony's belly as he went. Thankfully, Greyback stayed behind, continuing to hide in the safety of the trees. Remus didn't know what he would have done if Greyback had insisted on following the entire way.

Moony continued to close the distance between himself and the boy, and truth be told, it wasn't as hard as he had imagined it would be. Remus was reminded of all the times he and Padfoot had played, chasing each other around the grounds of Hogwarts, pretending to prey on each other. It was just like that, only Padfoot wasn't quite in dog form at the moment. Now that he was close enough, Remus realized how much the boy even smelled like Sirius, making those memories stronger yet.

When Moony was only a dozen or so strides from Justin, he let out a low, guttural growl, letting the prey know he was close. Justin rounded on him, his bright blue eyes growing wide - blue, just like Sirius's. Remus could see him swallowing as the boy began to step back. Moony followed, keeping the same distance between them. Justin kept on going, backing up through the flowerbed, smashing some of the flowers in his wake. When the boy's back connected with the side of the house, he stopped, his eyes widening even more in fear.

Neither of them moved for several seconds, and then everything seemed to happen all at once. Justin darted towards his left, running for the porch. Moony broke into a run as well, which the body of a seven year old boy was no match against. Moony reached him quickly, reared up onto his back legs, and jumped.

Moony's front paws connected with the boy's shoulders, immediately forcing him to the ground. Justin yelped in surprise, his arms and legs spread-eagling and scrambling for purchase on the ground. Moony reached for the boy's waist, being careful with his claws, and pushed Justin over onto his back. Remus needed to see his eyes - the bright blue ones that were like Sirius's.

Moony opened his mouth wide and snarled. Justin's own mouth opened wide in a scream, his tiny limbs continuing to flail. That sound almost made Moony want to stop - that horrible, little boy scream that he was sure wasn't much different from his own at that age. But Remus knew he couldn't stop. If he did now, Greyback would turn on the both of them, and Remus wasn't about to let that happen.

The boy continued to scream, but then Remus focused on the eyes again - just the eyes. He could see Sirius in them, somewhere in the depths of the little boy's body, and they were fearless. Not terrified like they should be, but brave and trusting like Sirius's always were when he looked at Remus.

Before Remus could lose his nerve, he pressed his left paw into Justin's shoulder, holding him securely in place. He allowed his claws to pierce the sleeve of the boy's robes until he felt a warm wetness against his paw. Sirius had told him to make this believable, after all. Remus didn't think it would be very convincing at all if he had little to no blood on him.

Moony opened his mouth again and let out one last snarl. Then he leaned in and fastened his teeth around Justin's left shoulder. The boy's screams, nothing but sounds of pain, echoed in his ears while blood rolled over Moony's tongue like there was no tomorrow.

And perhaps there wasn't.

_To be continued..._


	7. Chapter 7: The Bite

**Love Sees More 3: Greyback's Pack**

Chapter 7 - The Bite

The blood wasn't quite Sirius's. Well, it was, but it had a slight tinge to it that Remus really didn't like (not that he liked the taste of any blood, but this one was especially vile). Perhaps it was what children tasted like, and that thought made him sick. He wasn't sure how anyone could possibly enjoy biting people, and judging from what Greyback had said earlier, this was apparently supposed to give him a lust for more blood. Remus didn't see that happening. Ever.

After what felt like an hour, but was certainly just mere seconds, Moony released his grip on the boy's shoulder. For a precarious moment, Remus thought he was going to lose whatever food he had eaten that day. Moony's stomach lurched uncomfortably, so he shut his mouth and his eyes, desperately praying for the nauseous feeling to recede. It wouldn't do to be sick when he was supposed to be convincing Greyback that he was suitable for this pack.

The boy stopped screaming then, and the silence felt awkward. Moony hadn't realized that the boy still _had _been screaming, not until that moment. He had been yelling throughout the "attack", and it had become almost like a background noise to Moony.

Moony still couldn't open his eyes. His stomach had settled the tiniest bit, and he was afraid that if he saw the blood, that the nausea would start anew. That was when he felt little fingers in his fur - tiny fingers that belonged to a little boy.

"'M fine, Moony," came Justin's whispered voice in his ear, but in words that were strictly Sirius's. Remus needed that. Maybe he hadn't been looking, not just to keep the nausea at bay, but because he didn't want to see what sort of state the boy could possibly be in. "Just trying to make it convincing," Justin said quietly.

Moony opened his eyes then, Justin's bright blue ones looking up at him through the dark of the night. There was nothing in them to suggest that Sirius was in any pain, even though Remus knew he was. The boy did look a bit tired, but Remus supposed that was to be expected.

Justin winked, letting his hand fall from Moony's fur. Justin's eyes began to droop and he screamed again, although this one was much quieter than before. It actually sounded more like crying now rather than screaming. He started calling for help, for his parents, and Remus thought he could feel his heart actually breaking apart in his chest.

An ear-piercing scream startled him from this thoughts. Moony looked up to see who he assumed to be Justin's mother, Mrs. Farris standing on the porch of her house. She was shrieking at the top of her lungs, her hands pressed to the sides of her face in horror. Even though she knew the boy wasn't really her son, the sight had to be shocking to her nonetheless.

Remus definitely couldn't understand how anyone could enjoy this. If he had just bitten her son for real, Remus suspected he would feel like the lowest creature on the planet. Then again, he supposed that many of the werewolves already felt like vile creatures before they ever even set foot in Greyback's Pack; they wouldn't be there otherwise.

"R-ROBERT!" the woman yelled. She started sobbing and fumbling around in her robes for something. When she finally looked up at Moony again, he saw that she had withdrawn her wand. She raised it high over Moony's head and yelled, "_Avada Kedavra_!"

It missed by nearly a dozen feet, slamming into the branch of a tree somewhere and causing it to snap off. Remus knew that was his cue to leave, but he was torn. The last thing he wanted to do was leave Sirius now. Sirius had said he was fine, but Remus wouldn't be able to relax until he knew for sure. Then again, if he stayed any longer, especially after Mrs. Farris had thrown a Death Curse at him, he would probably be precariously close to throwing his cover with Greyback.

Moony took one last look at his best friend. The left shoulder of Sirius's - or the boy's - robes was now soaked through with blood. Justin's eyes were drooping, and he looked like he might be losing consciousness. Remus wondered if that was part of the act or not, but he knew he couldn't stay any longer to find out for sure.

Moony turned and took off running into the woods. Behind him, he heard Mrs. Farris calling for her husband again, but he tried to block it out as he ran. He even passed Greyback and the other werewolves, not wanting to even look at them at the moment. Remus didn't even care how that made him look. He just kept on running, and he didn't plan on stopping until it was completely quiet - until he couldn't hear a single sign of what he had done.

When he was sure he was alone, Moony finally slowed, coming to a stop near a small clearing. His heart was racing so fast, it almost felt like he _had _done something wrong - like he had bitten a child for real.

Sighing heavily, Moony noticed for the first time that he had blood all over him. It had dripped down his chin onto his chest and paws, staining the grey fur crimson. The taste of the blood hung in his mouth, a stark reminder of what he had just done. It made him feel dirty, tainted.

All he wanted to do at that moment was to return to the village and make sure that Sirius was okay, but he knew he couldn't risk it. If he was still on good terms with Greyback, he couldn't do anything to jeopardize it, especially not now. He hadn't just gone through all of this to throw it away for a moment of weakness.

With any luck, however, Sirius would be gone by now. As soon as Justin's parents got to him, they were supposed to immediately Floo to Hogwarts under the guise that they were taking Justin to a healer. Dumbledore was waiting for them, and he was going to take Mr. and Mrs. Farris to be with Justin.

That was perhaps the only thought that kept Remus from losing his mind - that Justin was somewhere safe and nowhere near any of this madness. Remus tried to push everything else out of his mind and focus only on that.

He curled up under a tree and hoped that Greyback and the rest of the werewolves would have enough sense to leave him in peace. When morning came, he would have to carry on with his charade, but for now, he just wanted to be left alone…he wanted to stop being a spy for just a moment.

* * *

When the sun rose, Remus awoke and was stunned to find himself back in human form already. The transformation back almost always woke him up, but he had managed to sleep through the entire thing. That had only happened a handful of times that he could recall; he truly must have been exhausted.

Remus sat up, feeling beyond disgusted with himself. The taste of blood still lingered in his mouth, and his hands and robes were still stained with blood from the night before. He tried not to think about the fact that he probably smelled pretty close to the way Greyback did. Remus had never wanted a hot bath, a toothbrush and toothpaste, and clean clothes more than he did right now.

Remus slowly got to his feet, looking around at the clearing he was in and the woods surrounding it. He didn't see anyone else around, and he wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not. Remus still didn't know for sure whether he had done an acceptable job last night. He supposed that if he hadn't, Greyback would have hunted him down and killed him already, but it still make him uneasy to not for sure.

Taking a deep breath, Remus started making his way back towards the direction of the village and the compound. He knew he was expected at the meeting before breakfast, and he felt like it was pretty close to that time.

Remus didn't encounter anyone else at all on his way. The woods were empty except for the birds and other small creatures that inhabited it. He stopped briefly at the Farris' cottage, but it appeared to be dark and empty as well. Trying not to look at the pool of blood that had formed on the front lawn, Remus continued on along the outskirts of the village. A part of him hoped that he'd never have to walk that path again.

When he approached the compound, everything appeared normal to him. The only sign of life he saw were a few of the werewolves sitting around the mouth of the cave. Remus assumed that everyone else was either inside somewhere, or still in the woods, recovering from the transformation. If they were deciding to throw Remus out of the pack, he doubted they would lounging around.

He wasn't quite sure where to go. Greyback said he was allowed to go anywhere now, but he didn't exactly know if he would be welcome to sit with the others around the cave entrance. He still felt like he was an outsider, like he didn't belong among them.

Finally, he decided to just go to the mess hall to wait for the meeting to start. Remus wasn't sure how it had looked to the others when he had run off into the woods last night, but he wanted them to know that he wasn't afraid. Even though he was really terrified.

A few of the werewolves around the cave looked up at him as he passed, but none of them seemed particularly interested in him. They never did, which he supposed was a good thing. Remus continued on to the mess hall, trying to act like he was confident and knew exactly what he was doing. Even though he really didn't.

At first, the mess hall appeared to be empty. The corners remained in shadows, and it was hard to see, even with the little bit of sunlight creeping in through the boards over the windows. But as Remus's eyes adjusted to the darkness, he saw that someone was there - Greyback.

The older werewolf was sitting in the corner, watching him closely. Remus's heart hammered in his chest. What if Greyback didn't think he did an acceptable job the night before? What if he was going to be attacked? What if he was going to be punished for wasting Greyback's time through all of this? What if Greyback was going to try and kill him?

After several minutes of silence, Greyback got to his feet. He eyed Remus for a moment longer before saying, "I wondered when you were going to be back. Where'd you run off to last night?"

Remus blinked. He didn't know what he had been expecting Greyback to say, but not exactly that. "I…into the woods. That bloody woman started to throw Death Curses at me. I got scared." He paused and swallowed.

Greyback started to stalk towards him, and Remus kept wondering if he had failed - if Greyback was just playing around with him before he attacked. "You didn't have to stay in the woods, you know," Greyback said. "I like to come back here after the initial transformation and after I've had something to eat. It's much more comfortable than the woods."

"I was tired," Remus explained. "I ended up passing out in a clearing. Woke up just a bit ago."

"I see," Greyback said, now only mere inches away from he Remus. He looked down at him, and Remus wasn't sure what to make of his expression. One could never quite tell with Greyback; he could be perfectly calm one moment and fly off the handle the next.

Suddenly, Greyback's lips broke into a smile. "You should have stayed for the show. It was wonderful, seeing the distraught parents struggling to get their broken son into the house, while he cried out in pain, leaving a trail of blood behind. I'm sure they're at some healer's as we speak, begging him to _fix _their little boy, because they can't bear the thought of him being a _monster_. I wish I could see that, too."

Remus tried to hold Greyback's eyes and to keep his face expressionless. Remus wanted nothing more than tell Greyback what a sick freak he really was and to walk out and never come back. But he stayed, pretending like Greyback's words didn't phase him.

After what seemed like forever, Greyback broke the silence that had settled again. "You did well, Remus, as I knew you would. Welcome to my pack. You're one of us now."

"Thank you, sir," Remus mumbled, looking down at the floor. He took the opportunity to glare daggers at the poor, defenseless wood. Greyback's words were partially a relief, knowing that he had passed his test, but on the other hand, he wished didn't feel like the worst possible person on the planet.

Greyback reached out a finger, placing it under Remus's chin. He directed Remus's gaze up again and inhaled deeply, as if sniffing Remus. "You still have his blood on you," Greyback growled hungrily, his tongue darting out to lick his lips. "I'll bet he tasted sweet, didn't he?"

"Yes, sir," Remus said, pretending like he might have been answering a completely different question - if he liked chocolate perhaps.

"I'm sure he did," Greyback almost purred. "Don't wash it off. Wear it like a badge of honor for as long as it will stay - a reminder to the rest in this pack that you do belong with us now. Especially that Talon. I can't wait until he shows up," Greyback hummed pleasantly, finally releasing his hold on Remus's chin. "He seemed so sure you wouldn't do it, that I was making a horrible mistake by letting you stay. I can't wait to see his expression when he finds out that not only are you still here, but that you now outrank him."

For some reason, that make Remus smile. "I can't either."

Greyback continued to grin in return. "They should be here shortly," he said, "but do make yourself at home until they arrive." He turned and returned to the corner he had been sitting in before. He resumed one of his favorite activities - picking at his teeth with his long and yellowed fingernails.

Trying not to think about what Greyback could have possibly eaten last night, Remus found a place on the floor, stretching out his tired and sore limbs. He leaned back against the wall, dozing slightly until he heard the other werewolves begin to arrive.

As usual, none of the others seemed all that curious or surprised to see him there. The only ones to truly acknowledge his presence were Althea (she smiled and waved) and Talon. He, on the other, did not look the least bit pleased.

Greyback stood and counted them as they entered, making sure everyone was accounted for. Remus got to his feet as well, trying to pretend like he really did belong there - like this was his home now, which it would never be.

"As you all can see," Greyback announced proudly, walking back and forth among the werewolves, "Remus is still here, which means that yes, he passed his test. He successfully turned the Farris boy last night." He continued to pace back and forth, but then stopped in front of Talon. "I know that there was some _doubt _among you about Remus's suitability for this pack. I was accused of being _stupid _by letting him in." He threw his head back and laughed. "I do hope that this clears up any reservations on your part. Remus is one of us now, and he is to be treated as such." Greyback stepped closer to Talon, glaring down at him. "Especially by those _beneath _him." Greyback looked up and then around at the rest of the pack. "Is that clear to everyone?"

A murmur of affirmative answers went through the crowd, and Greyback looked even more pleased with himself by the moment. He turned on his heel and faced Remus next.

"Remus," he said, "you are now officially a delta - two ranks above where you were yesterday. Well done."

Remus held his head up, trying to look as proud as could about it. "Thank you, sir."

"And that's all for today," Greyback said. "You may all go to breakfast now, and I'll see you at lunch."

Greyback immediately left the mess hall, probably happy about the fact that he didn't have to "baby-sit" Remus anymore. Even Talon left right away, not even bothering to stick around to throw some nasty words at Remus. Perhaps Talon was beginning to accept Remus.

The only one to stay behind was Althea. She hurried over to Remus and said, "I knew you'd still be here. I'm kind of glad, and congratulations on making delta. I've been here for two years, and I haven't even gotten that far."

Remus smiled in return, not sure what else he was supposed to do.

"Did you want to get some breakfast together?" she asked.

"Actually," Remus said, "I'm still pretty tired from last night. I think I'm just going to take a nap, but I'll see you at lunch, okay?"

Althea looked disappointed, but she nodded and tried to put on her best smile. "Okay," she finally responded before she left him alone.

There was only one thing Remus wanted to do in that moment. He quickly left the mess hall and looked around. The other werewolves had all gone into the forest to hunt, so Remus headed towards the front of the compound. He passed the shack that he had spent so many nights in and returned to the spot behind the tree where he had first arrived.

He looked around, making sure he was completely alone, and then he Disapparated.

* * *

The first thing he did upon arriving at number twelve, Grimmauld Place was run to the nearest bathroom. Greyback had told him not to wash off the blood, but he had to. The continued tang of it around his lips and the stickiness of it on his hands was making him crazy. He needed it off and he didn't give a damn about what Greyback thought.

Remus went to the sink, turned on the water, and grabbed the bar of soap. He spent nearly five minutes scrubbing his hands until they were raw. When he rinsed them, he started on his face, rinsing out his mouth and scouring at his cheeks and chin until there was no sign of the dried red blood left.

When he was done, Remus looked in the mirror for the first time in nearly a month. The only thing he seemed to notice was that his face was still bright red, no longer from the blood, but from scrubbing at it so hard. He really hated the color red.

He stared at himself for so long that he lost track of time, wondering how on earth he had even gotten involved him something so insane. Remus finally bowed his head, and that was when he noticed that the basin now held the remains of what he had scrubbed off. Pinkish trails of blood and water were swirling around the drain.

Before Remus even realized it, tears began dripping down his face. They pooled into the bottom of the sink, mixing with the blood and water already there. Just then, he heard a knock at the bathroom door which made him jump.

"Moony?" came Sirius's voice from the other side. "Is that you?"

Remus stared open-mouthed at the mirror. He wiped frantically at his face, not wanted Sirius to know he had been crying. Then again, he wasn't even entirely he wanted to see Sirius at all. Well, he did, and that's why he was there, but a part of Remus was embarrassed about what he had done last night, even though it was all a part of the plan.

"Yeah," Remus responded miserably. "It's me."

"Are…you okay?" Sirius asked next. "Can I come in?"

"Help yourself."

The door squeaked open and then Sirius stuck his head in. He looked normal (as normal as Sirius did anyway). He didn't look to be in pain or anything, which relieved Remus somewhat.

"I…didn't expect you be back again so soon," Sirius said awkwardly, coming further into the room. "Are you okay?" he asked again.

"No," Remus said truthfully. "I'm really not, but…" He broke off, not able to form the words. He took a deep breath and then gave Sirius the most apologetic look he could muster. "I believe I should be asking you that question."

Sirius blinked. "What, last night? I told you not to worry about it. It really wasn't a big deal, and I'm fine."

Before Remus could stop himself, he had crossed the room, pulling Sirius's collar open. He had to see, had to make sure that the bite was healing, that he hadn't somehow sentenced his best friend to the same fate he suffered.

Remus found the area where he had bitten Sirius, the area between his neck and left shoulder - the same place were Remus's own scar would remain forever. Sirius's shoulder, however, was clean and completely devoid of any sort of injury whatsoever.

Sirius pulled Remus's hand away. "I said I'm fine."

"I know," Remus breathed in relief, "but I…I had to see. No matter how confident Dumbledore was, a part of me was still terrified that it would scar. That you would be…"

"I'm not a werewolf, Moony," Sirius interrupted. "Madam Pomfrey was able to fix the bite and scratches in no time. Besides, if you had infected me, I doubt I'd be standing here talking to you. I'd be unconscious from the bite right now, wouldn't I?"

"Yes," Remus sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I know, but…" He felt the tears welling up in his eyes again, but he tried to push them away. He turned away from Sirius, unable to hold his best friend's gaze any longer. "I'm sorry, Sirius."

"Moony, I told you," Sirius said, approaching him from behind, "I'm _fine_. Honestly. It really wasn't any worse than when we were at Hogwarts together, before you had the Wolfsbane." He didn't know if it would be welcome - it certainly hadn't been before - but he reached out and placed a hand on Remus's shoulder. When Remus didn't shake it off, Sirius added, "I told you I trust you. I did last night and I still do now. Nothing's changed, and you didn't hurt me. Not in the least. I knew you wouldn't and that's why I agreed to it. You have nothing to feel ashamed of."

Remus continued to stare down at floor. He still had a hard time even looking at Sirius, and he still did feel ashamed, even though Sirius had told him not to be.

"Moony, look at me."

It took Remus nearly another minute before he could raise his eyes to his best friend. When he saw that Sirius was smiling, however, it did make him feel the tiniest bit better.

"Don't even worry about it," Sirius said. "I'm not made of glass, you know."

That caused a smile to spread across Remus lips. Sirius had always said the same thing when they were at Hogwarts, especially after particularly nasty transformations. "I know you're not."

"So…you're not dead," Sirius said.

Remus raised an eyebrow. "Brilliant observation, Padfoot."

"No," Sirius said, "I mean…it worked then? Greyback fell for it? You said he probably would have killed you if he thought it a farce."

"Yeah," Remus replied, nodding. "He fell for it. Pretty hard. He made me a delta, in fact." When he received a confused look from Sirius, Remus explained, "Two ranks above what I was when I arrived. That's a good thing. It means he trusts me."

Sirius looked mischievously happy. "I take back what I said. He truly is an idiot, isn't he?"

"You have no idea." Remus let out a quiet laugh before he turned serious once again. "What about Mr. and Mrs. Farris? I couldn't bear to stick around and watch last night, and I was a bit worried that Greyback or the other werewolves would do something crazy…"

"They're fine," Sirius said reassuringly. He paused and then said, "Actually, maybe you should see for yourself." He suddenly grabbed Remus's hand and began dragging him towards the door.

"Wait, what?" Remus asked, frantically trying to loosen Sirius's grasp on his hand. "I'm a mess - I can't possibly go meeting people."

Sirius stopped and looked at Remus again. "Under the circumstances, I doubt very much that they'll mind."

"What circumstances?" Remus asked, continuing to try and pry Sirius's fingers off. Without waiting for an answer, he said, "Padfoot, I'm in no condition…"

"I told you they won't care," Sirius said. "Trust me." He gave Remus a firm look before continuing to drag his best friend out into the hallway. Remus followed him down the steps, albeit grudgingly, not sure he wanted to look these people in the eye at all.

"Er…where are they? Hogwarts?" Remus asked. He certainly didn't want to go to a public place to meet them either.

"Nope, they're here."

"What?"

"Dumbledore needed a safe location to bring Justin last night," Sirius explained as they continued down the stairs. "He was going to take them to Hogwarts at first, but then he thought that a Secret-Kept house would be safer. He didn't have time to find another place on such short notice, so he settled on here. It's only for a few days until he can find them a more permanent place."

Remus felt even more awkward. If he had known they were there, he didn't think he would have come at all; if he felt embarrassed around Sirius, he knew it was nothing compared to what he would feel in front of the Farris family.

Sirius, however, didn't seem the last bit concerned. He didn't stop until they reached the kitchen where Mr. and Mrs. Farris and Justin were all seated around the table. When Sirius and Remus entered, the family looked up, curious as to who was there.

Remus recognized Justin and his mother immediately - their faces from the night before would forever be burned into his memory. They both had brown hair and blue eyes. Mr. Farris was the only one who looked remarkably different; he had blond hair and green eyes.

"I didn't know you guys would get to meet so soon," Sirius said. "I wasn't expecting Remus to come by at all today, but…he did." He gestured to Remus and said, "Remus Lupin." He pointed at the others and said, "The Farris family - Robert, Ava, and Justin."

Remus only looked at them for a few moments before he directed his eyes at the floor. He felt more awkward than ever, and he really wished that Sirius hadn't dragged him down here. Maybe once this was all over, it would have been better, but Remus could only imagine what he must have looked like in that moment.

A long silence consumed the room, but then it was broken by one of the chairs sliding across the stone floor. Remus heard footsteps approaching, but he still didn't dare look up…but then he didn't need to. Justin, the little boy, had come right into his field of vision, smiling up at him. It was such a stark contrast to the expressions on his face the night before that Remus had a hard time processing it.

"Are you the man that saved me from becoming a werewolf?" Justin asked.

Remus opened his mouth, not to respond, but in surprise. He didn't know what he had been expecting to hear, but it certainly wasn't that. He looked up at Ava and Robert, then to Sirius again. "I…er, I guess I am," he finally managed to get out.

Justin smiled. "Thank you."

Remus felt his cheeks growing warm. "You don't need to thank me."

Ava stood up from the table next, coming over to them. "Mr. Lupin…"

"Remus, please," Remus corrected.

"Remus," Ava repeated, stopping just behind her son and placing her hands on his shoulders. "We do need to thank you. Sirius and Albus explained to us what would have happened if not for you…that Greyback was planning on biting our boy…on turning him into a werewolf."

"Mr. Lupin…" Robert began next, standing up from the table as well. "I mean Remus," he corrected himself as he crossed the room. "You think we're afraid by…what happened last night…by what we saw. But we're not. We're just grateful to you for protecting our little boy, and thanks to you and Sirius, Greyback will never know the difference.

"Greyback is," Robert continued, "a _vile _creature. Of course, it was saying things like to him in the first place that got us into this position, but he is. He thought that, maybe, making Justin a werewolf would make us understand it, but…I think you've done more to help us understand it than he ever could. You showed us that not all werewolves are bad, certainly not like Greyback. If that's the way _he's _treated, he has no one to blame but himself for that." He paused and ran a hand through his blond hair. "I'll admit that I did used to think that all werewolves were like him, but you've proven that there are some of you who aren't. Thank you for showing me that I was wrong." He put out his hand for Remus, which the werewolf took.

"You still don't need to thank me," Remus said quietly. Before he even thought about what he was saying, he began, "I did what any…" He broke off, because he couldn't even say that, could he? He didn't do what anyone else would have done, and certainly not Greyback. Greyback himself had just proven that.

"My point exactly," Robert said. "Not just anyone else would have done what you did. Greyback would have bitten him just because we were ignorant. And I don't know you, but what from I've heard, I doubt you would have bitten him for _any _reason."

Remus closed his eyes, feeling caught, somehow, by their praise. He wasn't really one to be made a fuss over like this, because it made him uncomfortable, but on the other hand, he didn't entirely mind. "No, sir. I wouldn't have."

"We know it hasn't been an easy month for you," Robert added, "but if nothing else comes out of this, please know that we are grateful for what you've done. If nothing else, be proud of yourself for that."

Remus knew they spoke the truth, but they didn't really understand everything he had to do to keep up this act. Perhaps if they knew the whole story, they would feel differently, because Remus did; he truly wondered if he could ever feel proud of himself ever again.

_To be continued..._


	8. Chapter 8: The Altercation

**Love Sees More 3: Greyback's Pack**

Chapter 8 - The Altercation

Remus Apparated back to the large tree just outside of the perimeter of the former werewolf colony. He immediately held his breath and froze, his eyes darting back and forth across the trees to make sure no one saw him. When he was certain he was alone, he released his breath and slumped back against the tree.

He knew he had to quit sneaking off, because his luck was going to run out sooner or later. Greyback didn't care if the werewolves left the compound, just as long as they were back in time for meetings. However, Remus knew it was an unspoken rule that as soon as he joined the pack, all magic stopped. Greyback despised magic, and Remus was certain that Greyback would be furious to know that Remus was still using it. Not to mention, if Greyback knew _where _Remus was sneaking off to, he'd be in even bigger trouble. Remus still hadn't given Greyback a reason to punish him, and Remus intended on keeping it that way.

Besides, the more Remus returned to Grimmauld Place, the more homesick it made him feel and the harder it was to return to this hellhole. If Remus went back to Sirius's house one more time, he was fairly certain he wouldn't have it in him to return to Greyback. Remus wanted nothing more than to go home, to forget this place forever, but he couldn't; he certainly didn't spend the last month here only to throw it away now.

Squaring his shoulders, Remus stepped out from behind the tree, ready to continue this ridiculous charade. The more time that this went on, the more Remus became convinced that Sirius was right - this whole thing was insane. Then again, at least Remus had been able to save Justin from the same fate that he and other werewolves endured month after month. Even if Remus didn't gain any useful knowledge from Greyback, he supposed that saving Justin was reward enough.

It appeared that most of the werewolves had returned from breakfast. As usual, the epsilons were all gathered around the mouth of the cave. They stared in Remus's general direction as he approached, and he wasn't quite sure what to make of their expressions. They didn't look like they were feeling much of anything - which was pretty common - but Remus was afraid they might be angry with him. Remus wouldn't blame them in the least if they were; Remus had only been there for a month, and he already outranked the dozen or so of them. Other than him, Althea was the most recent addition to the pack and she had been there for two years. Remus was pretty sure that the other epsilons, having been there even longer, wouldn't exactly be happy with him at the moment.

Remus knew he had to begin trying to sway some werewolves over to Dumbledore's side as soon as possible. He already figured it would be easiest to start with the lowest ranking werewolves, but then again, he wasn't so sure. Some of them would probably love nothing better than to report him to Greyback just so they could advance in the pack. Remus might be safe with one slipup since Greyback had already made him a delta, but if more than one werewolf reported him, he knew his time here would be limited. Greyback could only be fooled for so long.

So Remus decided to start with the very easiest - Althea. She still didn't feel like she belonged in the pack, even after two years, and since Remus was her first and only friend there, he figured he'd have the best luck with her. Hopefully.

Althea never stayed too close to the other werewolves, and today was no exception. She was sitting on the ground outside of the cave, her back pressed up against it. She was alone, and she had her knees pulled up to her chest with her arms wrapped around them. Little beams of sunlight were peeking through the canopy above her, and she seemed to be fascinated with the patterns it was making on the forest floor.

She looked up and smiled when she heard Remus approach. "Hi," she greeted, pushing her dirty blond hair back, which had been caught up in the autumn breeze. "So where'd you go off to?"

Remus sat down next to her, blinking. "What?"

"I asked before if you wanted to get some breakfast together," she explained. "You said you were going to take a nap instead, but I saw you go off into the woods. Where'd you go?"

"Oh. I did take a nap," Remus lied. He still couldn't believe how easily it seemed to come to him now. "I find the forest floor much more comfortable than any of the ruddy beds here."

"Oh, I do too, actually," Althea replied. "I remember the cot Greyback made me sleep on when I first got here. It was like sleeping on a piece of concrete, for Merlin's sake." She scowled. "Dunno why those above us even _use _them. Or why they would want to."

"It's a status symbol, I suspect," Remus said. "Just because they have something the epsilons don't, they think that makes them special. I doubt they like to use them, but they do just because they can."

"You're a delta now," Althea pointed out. "You're allowed to sleep in a shack if you want. How come it's not a status symbol to you?"

"Because I have common sense?" Remus teased, which made Althea giggle. "It's not worth throwing my back out just to look important. Especially not around here." A moment of silence passed, broken only by the sound of the breeze through the trees and the low din of the werewolves talking just around the wall of the cave. "Besides, I never had much to begin with. You think my wizard _friends _ever gave me such amenities?"

That was another blatant lie, but Remus was supposed to be playing a part. The part of a werewolf who had been oppressed and was fed up with the entire wizarding world.

"I guess not," Althea whispered. She picked at a blade of grass, bending it in different directions. "What about your parents?" she asked after a while. "How did they treat you after you were bitten?"

Remus closed his eyes briefly, but then looked up at the bright blue sky peeking through the trees. "My parents were wonderful. Not only did they completely accept it, but they took care of me. They built a shack for me in the backyard to use for transformations, so I didn't even have to leave home. And they never treated me like I was any less of a son - they treated me just the same as they always did." It felt good to be finally be honest about something, and Remus didn't think he could have lied about how wonderful his parents were even if he tried.

Althea pulled several blades of grass out of the ground and tossed them away in frustration. "Wish my parents did. They told me to leave and never come back. They said it was my fault that I was bitten at all, so I was on my own."

"I'm sorry." Remus didn't know what else to say.

Althea shook her head and changed the subject. "So why aren't you with your parents anymore? If they treated you so well, what on earth are you even doing here?" She lowered her voice on the last half-dozen words so the other werewolves nearby wouldn't hear.

"I would love to still be with them, but it's not possible," Remus said. "They passed away some time ago."

"Oh." Now it was Althea's turn to apologize.

Remus attempted to brush it off. "Like I said, it was a long time ago. My mum passed away when I was just six, and my dad raised me on his own after that. He died when I was seventeen."

"Wait," Althea said, turning towards him in curiosity, "you said both your parents accepted you after you were bitten."

"Yes."

"So how old _were _you when you were bitten if your mum died when you were six?"

"I was five."

Althea looked shocked. "Damn. I can't even _imagine _dealing with this at that age."

Remus suppressed the urge to respond with a cynical comment. He wasn't entirely sure if Althea's test had involved biting a child, but Remus assumed so. Greyback loved nothing more than to turn children; why would he choose anything other to test his potential followers?

"At least I was old enough to take care of myself when I was bitten," Althea continued, pulling Remus from his thoughts. "Although how anyone really expects us to take care of ourselves is beyond me, especially when they won't even give us proper jobs." She paused and added, "You were very lucky to have your parents, then."

Remus nodded. "I know I was. Believe me."

"What would have happened to you if not for them? Would you have gone to a colony?"

"Probably."

Althea seemed to think this over for a long time. "I know they're bad, but…I don't really know anything about them. My parents threatened to have me sent to one if I _didn't _leave. Yeah, thanks, Mum and Dad," she muttered sarcastically, rolling her eyes. "The way they talked about colonies, I could tell they were horrible places, but…"

"Let's put it this way," Remus interrupted gently. "Greyback was in a colony, and based on that information alone, I can absolutely understand why he is the way he is."

"Oh. Do you think that's why he's so-" Althea stopped and glanced around to make sure they were alone. She tapped her temple with her index finger and whispered, "Mental?"

"I'm sure there are other factors, but I'm positive that that's part of it." Remus leaned in closer to her, not wanting any of the other werewolves to hear what they were talking about. "You know that this place _used _to be a colony." When Althea nodded, Remus went on. "They didn't let you leave your cell except for meals. You weren't allowed to have anything to occupy your time - books or anything of the like. Imagine sitting there, day after day, doing nothing except staring at the walls. You had _one _pair of robes, and if they wore out, you were out of luck. If you got sick, you were still out of luck. If you were on your deathbed, they didn't care. One less werewolf to worry about. The rubbish that they served for meals could hardly be called food. And if you broke the rules or even so much as talked, you were beaten to a bloody pulp. So no, it's not surprising at all that Greyback is like this. It's all he knows."

Althea stared at him, her eyes wide, trying to absorb everything he had just said. "But…" she began, but she stumbled over her wording at first. "Well, you've never _been _to a colony, right? So how do you know all that?"

"I've never lived in one," Remus corrected, "but I _have _been to one. When I was-" Remus squinted, the details feeling a bit faded with time "-eleven, my dad took me to one. Just to see what it was like," he added hurriedly when Althea looked like she was about to interrupt. "I was a bit curious, and he wanted me to know what sorts of things other werewolves went through. He wanted me to see that they all weren't as lucky as I was. That was the first time I ever laid eyes on Greyback. It was during a meal, and they were under strict orders not to talk. Greyback did anyway, and they beat him for it until he bled."

Althea frowned deeply, taking in Remus's words. She swallowed before she admitted, "You know, I kind of feel sorry for him now."

"I do, too."

"Merlin, people are stupid."

"Er…who would that be? Because in here, you're going to have to be a bit more specific."

Althea laughed out loud, but then slapped her hand over her mouth so she wouldn't disturb any of the other werewolves. "I mean the world in general. They treat us the way they do and then they act like _we're _the ones who are in the wrong? It's insane. What else are we supposed to do? We don't have any options - we can't get jobs. What are our choices other than a colony or joining up with Greyback? And no one in their right mind would _willingly _go to a colony, so there's really only _one _option if we want any company at all. Then they blame us for associating with the most savage werewolf that's ever lived, who turned out the way he did _because _of people like them…" She seemed to realized she was rambling, because she cut herself off with an irritated growl. "I don't get it."

Remus saw his chance, and he took it. "Althea, what if there was a place - other than this - where you could belong? A place where you could live like an actual human and be accepted as one? A place where you could have a comfortable bed, and clean clothes everyday, and three proper meals a day?"

Althea smiled wistfully. "Three proper meals a day - that's something I really miss. My mum's cooking, too." She licked her lips. "I would give anything right now for a bagel with cream cheese. And scrambled eggs. And a doughnut! With cream filling and chocolate icing…"

"Oh, a girl after my own heart," Remus joked. "I am a chocolate addict!"

"And a hot cup of coffee!" Althea added. "Nothing makes chocolate taste better than coffee."

Remus paused and then said, "The place I'm talking about, there are things like that there." He hoped that his tone suggested that he was imagining the whole thing - just playing along with their little game. "And bacon and sausage."

"And orange juice?"

"Of course."

"And showers, and soap, and toothbrushes?"

"Yes."

"I really miss being able to wash my hair, too." She pulled at her messy hair, trying to thread her fingers through it, and frowning when they got caught up on tangles. "But you know there isn't a place like that, Remus."

"What if there was?" he pressed. "Would you go?"

"That would count as desertion of the pack."

"Yes, it would," Remus agreed, "but is that something you'd be willing to risk? Turning Greyback against you if you could have a fairly normal life? A _real _life?"

"Oh, Remus," Althea sighed, "I'd go in a second! Of course I would, but we both know that it isn't possible. If there was a place like that at all, neither one of us would be here. We chose this place out of desperation - because we didn't _have _a choice." She crossed her arms over her chest, leaned back against the wall of the cave, and stared off into the distance. "It's not like I enjoy being here," she mumbled.

"I know," Remus said quickly. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you. It's just…sometimes it's fun to pretend that there is a place like that." He let his eyes drift up to the sky, watching the patches of blue in between the leaves.

She was silent after that, and Remus felt bad for being the reason, but his plan was in motion. All he wanted to do was plant the idea in her mind that there was a better place for them out there, and let her think about it for a bit.

"Oh, wonderful," Althea suddenly muttered sarcastically. "Just what we need."

"What?"

Althea was looking past Remus and pointing towards the front of the compound. "Guess who's coming."

Remus turned to look and saw Edmund Talon, Greyback's former second-in-command stalking towards them down the center of the compound, his stringy black hair flying out behind him.

Remus groaned, closed his eyes, and pressed his head back against the cave wall. "Please let him walk past us," he prayed aloud. "I'm really not in the mood for his attitude right now. He's got to be my least favorite person here. Even more so than Greyback at this point. And that is saying something."

"He's still really angry with you," Althea whispered.

Looking at her quickly, Remus asked, "How do you know? He didn't even seem to acknowledge me at the morning meeting. I thought that meant he'd finally decided to leave me alone."

Althea shook her head. "You missed breakfast. He was talking to the rest of the epsilons about what a fake you are. About how we all have to keep an eye on you, because you're bound to slip up sooner or later."

"Oh, for Merlin's sake!" Remus rolled his eyes and then pressed his hand over them. Not for the first time, he desperately wished that this entire thing was over with and that he could go home. "I proved myself to Greyback! What the hell else does he expect me to do?!"

"I've no idea, but if you ask me, he's _this _close-" Althea held up her thumb and index finger a minute distance apart "-from getting himself killed. Greyback isn't going to tolerate this much longer, and look at the state he's still in from the last time he acted up." She thrust her chin in Talon's direction.

Talon was still a small distance away, but the purple bruise around his left eye was as plain as day against his pasty skin. His lips were also swollen with bits of dried blood around the areas where they had split. Remus doubted that he would survive another attack from Greyback.

"Well," Remus said, "he can't exactly give up now, can he? Not when he's spent this long trying to prove that I am an imposter. He's probably willing to die before he ever admits that he's wrong…"

Remus trailed off and his stomach suddenly twisted up in knots. After all, Talon _was _right. He was a bastard and Remus greatly disliked him, but he certainly didn't want Talon to be killed because of him - because he was the only one that saw through Remus's act.

Talon finally reached them and unfortunately, he didn't walk past them like Remus had been hoping. He stopped just in front of Remus and Althea, crossing his arms over his chest and smirking down at them.

"What do you want, Talon?" Althea demanded.

Talon chuckled cruelly. "I just wanted to let Lupin know that I'm still not fooled. I _know _he didn't bite that boy last night. As I've said before, he doesn't have it in him to bite anyone." He threw his eyes up to the sky. "I've never seen such a farce in my life! I can't believe I'm the only that saw through it! Are all of you that stupid?!"

Remus clenched his teeth in anger, but tried to suppress the feeling. He wasn't about to let Talon make him lose control. He took a deep breath, then coolly said, "Maybe you shouldn't use that _particular _word around here - stupid. I don't think Greyback likes it too much. You wouldn't want to…get hurt again."

Talon narrowed his eyes. "Yeah, you'd like that, wouldn't you? But personally, I am just _dying _for the day that Greyback realizes what a phony you are, and beats _you _to a bloody pulp." He paused for effect before adding, "He will someday, you know. It's only a matter of time before he sees through you."

"Keep telling yourself that," Remus replied.

"You didn't think anyone saw you, did you?" Talon suddenly asked, sounding genuinely curious. "When you Apparated in the woods not long ago?" He jerked his thumb over his shoulder in the direction of the front of the compound.

Remus's heart gave an uncomfortable thump, but he decided that the best thing would be to shrug it off. "I really don't know what you're talking about."

Talon tilted his head, regarding Remus carefully. "Don't you? I've said it before and I'll say it again - I know what I saw. You, very clearly, appearing out of nowhere behind some trees. So where'd you go off to? Reporting to those wizarding friends of yours? The ones you claim you don't have?"

Remus got to his feet, staring down at Talon. He decided to play along a little. "If you're so sure I'm up to no good," Remus said, grinning at his own choice of words, "then why don't you just go and tell Greyback?" He waited, pleased with the way Talon's expression faltered. "Oh. That's right. You can't, can you? Because Greyback wouldn't believe you, and you'd end up looking even worse than you do now."

Clenching his fists in anger, Talon took a step closer to Remus, glaring at him. Remus stood his ground. Even Talon wasn't stupid enough to physically attack Remus, even though it was clear that he desperately wanted to; Greyback would certainly kill him then.

"He will believe me someday!" Talon said through clenched teeth. "And I'll be welcomed back as his second-in-command. In fact, I'll be honored for being the only one to know from the start what a liar you are!"

Remus didn't say anything, but he was happy with the way he handled the situation. There was no doubt that Remus had to stop sneaking off, but if Talon was the only one who saw, it wasn't much to worry about; no one else would believe him now, and Talon was losing any composure he had had.

Althea got up next and stood just behind Remus. "Look," she told Talon loudly, "he's already proved himself to Greyback, so why don't you just leave him alone? And just…get over yourself."

Talon's expression quickly changed to one of amusement. "Hm, got yourself a girlfriend, Lupin?"

"No. She's not my girlfriend."

"I wouldn't blame you if she was," Talon said, looking Althea up and down. "She is quite a tart."

That made something snap inside of Remus. He couldn't care less if Talon made fun of him or called him names, but now he was just going too far. Before Remus even realized what he was doing, he had fisted his hands in the front of Talon's robes. He forced the other werewolf back until Talon was pressed up against the wall of the cave.

"Don't you _ever _call her that again!" Remus snarled. "You don't even know her!"

"Remus…" Althea said quietly from behind him. "Don't worry about it…"

"So you do like her," Talon said smugly. "You only stick up for girls that you fancy."

"She's my friend!" Remus bit out. "And you are a very sorry excuse for a person to talk about women like that."

Talon threw his head back and laughed loudly. Remus wasn't quite sure how to respond to that, but it was the last reaction that he had been expecting.

When Talon's snickers finally died down, he threw his arms up in the air. "See what I mean?" he cried. "It doesn't make any sense! You have a fit when I call a girl a tart - and she is, by the way - but yet, you claim that you turned a _seven-year-old boy _last night! It just doesn't add up!"

"It's none of your business why I am the way I am," Remus retorted, "but I told you to _never _call her that again!"

"Remus," Althea tried again, "he's only trying to bait you. Don't let him - it doesn't bother me."

"Yes, you see?" Talon asked. "She's already resigned herself to the fact that she's nothing more than a-"

Before he could get the word out again, Remus had pulled him away from the wall of the cave and slammed him back into it. Talon's head connected with the stone with a soft _thud_. Remus didn't even know what he was doing, but he didn't think he could have stopped if he tried. He was just sick of this entire charade, of pretending to be someone he wasn't, and he had it with Talon egging him on all the time. He just had it.

Talon's words died in his throat, replaced with a low moan. His face screwed up in pain, reaching his hands up for the back of his head. He didn't move again right away, but then he opened his eyes to glower at Remus. "Just who do you think you are?!" Talon launched himself against Remus, forcing him away. Talon stumbled for a moment before he caught his balance, then he pressed a hand against the back of his head again. "Damn it! Greyback really did a number on me yesterday, okay? I don't need you adding bruises to my bruises."

Remus stepped a bit closer to him again. "You're really unbelievable, you know that? Let this be a lesson to you to stop next time when I order you to. Let's not forget - I now outrank you, and I won't hesitate to put you in your place again if I feel you deserve it."

Talon looked up at Remus for a moment before directed his eyes to the ground again. He kept running his hand gingerly over the back of his head. Meanwhile, Althea kept looking back and forth between the two of them as if she wasn't sure what to do. She almost looked shocked at the recent turn of events.

Just then, the silence that had fallen was broken by the very last voice that Remus expected to hear. "Is there a problem here?" Greyback asked. He was standing a short distance away, near the mouth of the cave. "Canin said you were fighting."

Remus's heart felt like it had somehow found its way into his throat. Would Greyback be angry with him for laying his hands on Talon? Greyback had never told him that he _couldn't _do so, but then again, Remus didn't think that Greyback would be okay with his followers beating each other up. This entire place would probably be in chaos if that were the case.

Remus took a step back from Talon, seeming to shrink a bit. He stared at the ground uncomfortably, wondering if he was about to be punished by Greyback for the first time.

"ANSWER ME!" Greyback roared.

"Bastard threw me into the wall of the cave! He made me bleed!" Talon cried. He had pulled his hand away from the back his skull, and his palm was indeed covered in blood. The sight made Remus's stomach curl in disgust. Had he really done that?

Greyback looked shocked at first, then he turned to look at Remus carefully. "_Remus_. I'm surprised at you." He stalked towards Remus, narrowing his eyes at him. "Explain yourself."

Remus felt sick, and his breathing had become hard and fast. He hung his head, trying to hide the fact that he was shaking - both out of anger at Talon, and out of fear about what was going to happen. He ran over his choice of words carefully. "I'm sorry, sir," Remus apologized. "He was out of line."

"How so?" Greyback demanded.

Remus forced himself to look Greyback in the eye. "He was showing insubordination. He kept insinuating that I'm not loyal to you, and that I'm even spying on you for someone."

"Oh?" Greyback whirled around to face Talon now. "Is that so? Talon, I underestimate you. I thought you would have learned your lesson by now."

"He's up to something, sir," Talon insisted, still rubbing at his head and flinching as he did so. "He Apparated away from the compound this morning. I saw him return not long ago."

Greyback's eyebrows went up, but then he chuckled. "You know, Talon, but you're not exactly the most trustworthy member of my pack anymore, so forgive me if I don't believe you. Is there anyone who can back up this claim of yours?"

"There's no need, sir," Remus said before Talon could reply. "I won't deny it." It was a spur of the moment decision to come clean about it, but a plan had suddenly formed in Remus's mind. He only hoped he could use it before Greyback decided to hurt him. Or worse.

"I see," Greyback hummed.

"You are such a liar!" Talon yelled at Remus. "You claimed not five minutes ago that _I_ was the one who was full of it!"

"You're beneath me," Remus snapped. "I don't have to tell you anything."

"SILENCE!" Greyback screamed. "I don't believe I gave either one of you permission to talk amongst yourselves, now did I?"

"No, sir," both Remus and Talon whispered at the same time.

Greyback was silent for a moment, but then he turned to Althea, who had shrunken back from the scene. She was currently under the nearest tree, almost as if she was hiding in the shadow, trying not to be noticed. "Anything you would like to add, Jameson?" Greyback asked her.

"Everything Remus said is true," Althea said just loud enough for them to hear. She picked at a piece of bark on the trunk of the tree which came loose in her hand. "And he was sticking up for me, too. Talon was calling me names."

Talon rolled his eyes, but Greyback seemed satisfied with this. "Very well," he said, clasping his hands behind his back. "Remus, will you come to my shack please? I need to speak with you."

Remus swallowed hard, unable to find his voice. He looked down at the ground again and simply nodded.

"Ooooh!" Talon mocked, waving his hands around.

Greyback immediately stuck a finger in his direction. "_Don't_. You're not off the hook yet. I'll just deal with you later." Greyback looked at Remus again and ordered, "Come," before he turned and started walking back towards his shack.

Remus glanced quickly at Talon and then Althea. She looked at him apologetically, but before he could give Greyback another reason to be angry, Remus turned and followed him on shaky legs. He was absolutely terrified out of his mind. He had no idea what Greyback was going to do to him, and for a moment, Remus thought about just making a run for it. Dumbledore would certainly want him to leave rather than let Greyback harm him, but Remus continued to follow. He wasn't even quite sure why. His mind had suddenly gone blank except for one thought - what kind of shape would he be in once he got out of the shack?

_To be continued..._


	9. Chapter 9: The Beta Wolf

**Love Sees More 3: Greyback's Pack**

Chapter 9 - The Beta Wolf

Remus climbed the three small steps to the entrance of Fenrir Greyback's shack. The door was open, and the hulking alpha wolf was already inside. Remus hovered in the doorway and gripped the wooden frame tightly in his shaking fingers. His legs felt like they were full of jelly, and he was afraid for a moment that they wouldn't support him.

Greyback was standing in the middle of the shack, his back to Remus. Without even turning around, he ordered, "Come in and close the door behind you."

Remus threw one last look over his shoulder, desperately eyeing the woods beyond. If he made a run for it, he could make it to the trees and Disapparate before Greyback caught him. He could put this entire place behind him once and for all, but he didn't. He still felt like he had more to do here - more to learn for Dumbledore. Despite the fact that he had saved Justin from being turned, Remus would feel like his time here had been wasted if he left now. He didn't come here to save Justin, after all; he'd come for things that might help them in the war. If he left now, they wouldn't be any better off than they had been before he'd come, and that just wasn't good enough.

Steeling himself and taking a deep breath, Remus stepped over the threshold, pulling the door closed behind him. Greyback turned to face him, and his expression almost surprised Remus. He didn't look angry like Remus had been expecting; he looked almost interested.

Neither of them said anything, and the only thing Remus could hear was the harsh beating of his own heart. When Greyback finally began to approach him, his footsteps against the wooden floor almost seemed to emphasize that pounding which now seemed to have spread to the rest of his body.

Remus's hands were still shaking, and he clenched them tightly in an attempt to stop it. He didn't want Greyback to think he was weak or timid, even though it was probably obvious. Especially to Greyback. He could sense certain things easily. Or so he said.

Greyback's own hands were clasped behind his back as he looked over Remus carefully. That made Remus feel slightly better; if Greyback was going to beat him, Remus was pretty certain he'd look furious like he did all those times before he lost it with Talon. Not curious. Besides, wasn't Greyback one to act now and discuss the matter later? Or maybe Greyback was going to play with him a little bit first, like a cat going after a mouse. That was probably a good possibility, too.

"You look scared," Greyback observed.

"Yes, sir." Remus wished his voice didn't shake so much.

"Why?"

Remus had the urge to roll his eyes, but he didn't; he doubted Greyback would like that very much. Greyback didn't like a lot of things. Then he felt like telling Greyback that when a deranged, homicidal werewolf was angry at you and wanted to see you in private, then there were plenty of reasons to be scared! Instead, Remus said, "You're angry with me, sir. I don't like to upset you."

The tiniest smirk appeared on Greyback's lips, but then it was gone. "But you're still here."

So he was playing with him. Remus almost began to wish that Greyback would just get to the point; this cat and mouse game was nerve-wracking. "Yes, sir."

"Again, why?" Greyback asked, sounding genuinely curious. "You think I'm going to hurt you, correct? So why not - oh, I don't know - run and hide instead?"

His heart thumping erratically, Remus said, "Because you told me to come."

There was that smirk again, quickly playing across Greyback's dried and cracking lips before it flitted away once more. "You sound confused."

"You're my alpha wolf, sir. I'm supposed to obey you, even if I am afraid."

"Indeed," Greyback hummed, stepping away from Remus. He started pacing the shack, and Remus was grateful that Greyback was no longer hovering over him. When Greyback turned to face him again, he tilted his head. "Do you know how many of the others have done just that - run instead of facing me like a proper wolf would do?"

"No, sir."

"All of them. Every single last one of them," Greyback immediately replied. "Oh, they know better now, but when they were new to my pack, they all ran like _cowards _when they knew they were going to be disciplined. Even Talon and Canin when they first came here. They learned, of course, that that just makes things worse. That it just makes me angrier." He approached Remus again, this time looking very pleased. "But here you are. Facing me like a real wolf."

Remus felt more confused than ever. He really wasn't sure to make of this…praise. If Greyback was capable of such a thing. He just met Greyback's gaze, trying to pretend like he wasn't scared to death.

Greyback grinned - that wide, toothy smile that Remus had grown to hate. "You can relax, Remus," Greyback said. "I'm not angry with you, and I didn't call you in here to punish you."

Remus blinked. "Oh…" He had been about to ask why, but Greyback didn't like to be questioned, so he didn't say anything.

"Whoever said that I did?"

"No one," Remus said. "I just…you were angry outside. You said you were surprised at me. And when you wanted to see me in here privately, I just assumed…"

"Didn't you ever hear the expression that to assume makes an arse out of you and me?"

Remus contained a smirk. "Yes, sir."

"Being surprised at you isn't necessarily a bad thing. Quite the contrary. This time, it's actually a very good thing." When Remus looked even more confused than ever, Greyback started pacing back and forth in front of him and continued. "Remus, when you first came here, I'll admit I had my doubts. You've lived among wizards for far too long. They've tamed you. They've tried to turn you into a human when that couldn't be further from who you are. I had wondered, if after all this time, you might have forgotten what you really are." Greyback stopped pacing and stood just in front of Remus, facing him. "I was surprised, yes, when you decided to put Talon in his place just now. I didn't think you had it in you, but you've pleasantly proven me wrong." Greyback bared his yellow teeth in a maniacal grin. "Well done."

Remus felt ill, and not just because of Greyback's putrid breath. Remus had completely lost his temper with Talon, and he had physically laid his hands on him. That was something he never would have even contemplated before he'd come here. One month ago, the very idea would have sounded completely absurd to him, that he would physically hurt someone else with his bare hands just because he got angry. Just being there, just interacting with Greyback and the other werewolves, was clearly affecting Remus more than he'd expected, and that was exactly what Greyback wanted. He wanted followers that were more animal than man.

"You still look confused," Greyback hummed. He sounded pleased nonetheless.

"Well…" Remus forced himself to stop. He wasn't quite sure how to phrase his thoughts without sounding like he was questioning Greyback.

"Speak freely, please," Greyback said casually. He finally turned away from Remus and went to the back of the shack. He leaned back against the round and rickety wooden table, crossing his arms over his chest. "I'd very much love to hear what's going on in that mind of yours."

Remus eyed him closely for several seconds. He had almost been certain that the table would give out under the weight of the massive werewolf, but it didn't. Then, Remus wondered if Greyback had truly been serious about speaking freely. That certainly wasn't something that Greyback normally liked. Then again, Greyback had told him to do so, so Remus said, "I didn't think you'd like us…fighting among ourselves."

"Did I ever tell you you couldn't?"

"No."

Greyback held a hand up for a moment, as if to say that his point had just been proven. "If you didn't think I'd like it, why did you do it?"

Remus hung his head and closed his eyes in shame. "I couldn't help it. I lost control."

If Remus had been looking at Greyback, he would have been positively sickened by the twisted expression of pleasure that was on Greyback's face. "But you said Talon was out of line," Greyback said. "That he was being insubordinate to you. Correct?"

"Yes."

"There are a lot of rules that I didn't spell out for you, Remus, or for my other followers when they first came here. Sometimes I don't need to. The wolf's instinct doesn't need _rules_. It just _knows _without being told. Just like you knew that Talon, now being beneath you, _isn't _allowed to be insubordinate to his superiors, and your wolf knew exactly how to deal with that. I don't exactly deem that fighting, so you did nothing wrong."

It may not have been wrong in Greyback's eyes, but it was in Remus's. He wasn't even sure which would have been worse - upsetting Greyback and being punished for it, or going against his own principles. The latter, he supposed, which made Remus feel even worse.

"Now," Greyback went on, seemingly ignorant of Remus's own feelings, "what's this about you Apparating away from the compound?"

Remus swallowed hard. He had almost been hoping that Greyback had forgotten that tiny little detail. It had seemed like a brilliant idea at the time, but now he wasn't so sure he did the right thing in being honest about it. However, if Greyback was truly angry at him for it, wouldn't he have already punished him?

When Remus didn't say anything, Greyback asked, "Didn't I tell you that once you passed your test, you may go anywhere you pleased?"

"Yes, sir."

"This may surprise you, but I don't want this place to be like a prison, Remus," Greyback said quietly. "That's exactly what those filthy humans tried to do with these places when they were colonies - make them into _prisons_. Like we could ever truly be caged. I only keep any newcomers locked up for the safety of everyone else here."

For a very precarious moment, Remus thought he would laugh. The urge came over him so suddenly, and he only barely kept it in. Remus doubted very much that Greyback really cared about the safety of everyone else, considering he'd beat them to a pulp if he so wished. Greyback was surely only concerned about his own safety. No one else's.

Greyback considered Remus thoughtfully. "So why did you seem so afraid to admit to me that you did leave?"

"You mean aside from the fact that Talon made such a big deal out of it?"

Greyback rolled his eyes. "Talon's an arse, all right? I'm actually quite a bit embarrassed that he was ever my second-in-command. Now that he's an epsilon again, he's going to do everything in his power to try and discredit anyone he can. He's turning into a rat, running around, tattling on everyone for breathing wrong. God, how I hate that." He shook his head, seeming to realize that he had gotten off-topic. "So yes, aside from that."

Remus swallowed hard. "I just know you don't like magic, and I didn't think you'd exactly approve of me using it."

"But you did it anyway."

"I'm sorry, sir."

A very odd expression passed over Greyback's face. He looked vaguely amused with something, and his lips were twitching like he was trying to hide a grin. "You're right. I don't like magic. In fact, I despise it. You, however, were raised as a wizard. I didn't expect you to automatically stop using it just like that. As long as you don't do it in front of me, as long as you're not using it to otherwise defy me, and as long as you're not making a habit out of it. You aren't, are you?"

"No, sir," Remus lied.

"So where did you go?" Greyback demanded.

Remus looked down at his shoes and whispered, "To my best friend's house. Or who I always thought was my best friend."

"You said you came here because none of them trusted you anymore."

"Yes, sir."

Greyback narrowed his eyes. "So why would you go back there?" His voice had dropped considerably, almost to a growl. "To see if they'd _take you back_?"

Remus met Greyback's eyes immediately. "No, sir. Not at all. I never would have come here if I had the slightest doubts about leaving them behind. But as I said, I did consider this man to be my friend at one point. I know he doesn't trust me, but he isn't the reason I left, not primarily, and I had this crazy idea that he might actually be _worried _about me."

"And he wasn't?"

Remus laughed humorlessly. "He took one look at me, and I thought he was going to be sick to his stomach. He said he didn't care where I was or what I was doing, just as long as I didn't do it around him, because he was disgusted by the sight of me."

"He doesn't know you're here?"

Remus shook his head. "No. I didn't tell anyone. I just left, which is why I thought he might be concerned about what had happened to me."

"Hm," Greyback hummed, pushing himself away from the table and approaching Remus again. "That's a human emotion - worrying what your _friends _might think of you. I don't blame you, of course. As I've said, they've tamed you, and I expect it's going to take some time for you to let go of those _bad habits_." He placed a finger under Remus's chin, forcing Remus to meet his eyes. "You don't need them. _Friends _who only pretend to like you when you fit their _mold_? As soon as you start showing the real you, they want you out of their sight." He threw his head back and laughed loudly. "Those aren't friends, Remus. They may have pretended to be in the interest of having one more _number _on their side. That's exactly what you were to them - a number. One that is easily dispensable when you no longer act like they want you to. Anyone that treats you like that isn't a friend at all."

Remus had never wanted so badly to tell Greyback that he was wrong. Remus had left behind not only friends, but a family that he was much more than just a number to. For a moment, Remus felt terribly sorry for him, because that was something that Greyback would never know. "No, sir," Remus forced himself to reply instead, "they aren't."

Greyback nodded and released Remus's chin. He started walking around Remus in a circle, inhaling deeply, like he was smelling him again. Remus felt like a piece of meat, just waiting for Greyback to devour him, and perhaps that was exactly what he was.

"You're different," Greyback hummed as he appeared in Remus's line of vision again. "_So _different than anyone else who has ever been in my pack before." Greyback pressed a finger to the front of Remus's robes, trailing his yellowed fingernail along the dirty and torn fabric. Remus wanted nothing more than to squirm away from his touch, but he tried his best to remain still. Remus wondered just long he would be able to keep this up, because every time Greyback laid a finger on him, Remus had the insane urge to claw his own skin off.

Greyback leaned in so close to Remus, the stench was almost unbearable. "You came when I told you to," Greyback continued, "even though you were scared to death. I knew you were the moment you walked in - I could _smell _it on you. You wanted to turn and run like so many before you. You thought about it, didn't you? Turning and running?"

"Yes, sir," Remus bit out. He kept wishing that Greyback would give him some space; the close proximity to the alpha wolf was making his stomach turn and his skin crawl.

"But you knew better, didn't you?" Greyback asked. "Just like you knew not to lie to me. You didn't _have _to tell me that you Apparated, that you went to see that _friend _of yours. You could have very easily kept the entire thing from me. The only one that saw was Talon, and he's no longer trustworthy, so I never would have been the wiser. You were afraid of being honest, too. Afraid that I'd punish you for using magic or for sneaking off, but you came clean. Do you know how many of the others would have done that in your position?"

Despite the fact that Greyback was still too close, it was everything Remus could do to contain his smile. In that moment, he thought he just might have Greyback completely figured out - knew exactly what to say to charm the slimy wolf. "None of them, sir?" Remus asked complacently.

"Indeed." Greyback gestured towards the door of the shack. "They're all a bunch of self-serving bastards that would lie to me as soon as look at me if it meant making themselves look better. In fact, I know that they _all _have lied to me at one point or another. And then you stand here and confess to me about sneaking off of all things." Greyback threw his head back and laughed, a sound that grated on Remus's nerves. "You put them all to shame, quite frankly."

At long last, Greyback stepped back a bit, giving Remus some much needed space. He looked Remus up and down, as if appraising him before nodding. "I suppose you'll do."

Remus blinked. "Do for what, sir?"

Greyback laughed again, and this time, he sounded truly amused. "It's the furthest thing from your mind, isn't it? We've been in here, having a civil conversation for the better part of an hour, and you have no clue, do you?" He finally turned around and started pacing towards the other end of the shack, and Remus couldn't have been more relieved. "As I've said, you couldn't be more different than the rest of my followers."

Remus felt more confused than ever. He had absolutely no clue where this was going, or what Greyback could possibly be on about. The only thing that Remus was sure of was that Greyback liked to hear himself talk.

Greyback tilted his head, an almost devious expression appearing on his face that gave Remus the chills. "Everyone's going to think I've lost it, but let them. This, perhaps, will be a good test for all of them. They've been here such a long time, I think they've forgotten _certain _things. Like who is truly in charge here. But not you. This is still so new for you - I suspect you're trying your hardest to please me, which I think is exactly what I need." He stalked towards Remus, his head thrown back, looking down his nose at the younger werewolf. "I want you to be my new second-in-command."

Remus felt like the entire floor of the shack had dropped out from under him, but not necessarily in a bad way. Not exactly in a good way either. Did he honestly have Greyback wrapped that tightly around his finger already? A part of Remus said no, that there must be more to it than this, that it couldn't possibly be this easy.

"I can see it didn't even occur to you that that's why I invited you in here," Greyback said.

"No, sir. It didn't."

"Tell me what you're thinking."

"I…erm…" Just when Remus thought he had Greyback all figured out, Greyback did something to catch him completely off-guard. Remus's mind scrambled with the right way to respond. "I'm surprised," Remus slowly started off with. "Please don't think I'm questioning you in the least, because I'm not…"

"I told you when you came in that you may speak freely. Please continue."

"I thought you'd pick Canin."

Greyback chuckled, a sound that almost came out as a growl. "I'm sure that's what everyone thinks, but don't tell me you haven't noticed."

"Noticed what?"

"The way he follows Talon around everywhere," Greyback said, sounding disgusted, "like some sick little pup. He's been after the position since I can remember - and even worse since I picked Talon over him."

"How long has that been?"

Greyback looked up at the ceiling of the shack for a moment, appearing deep in thought. "Going on two years. Ever since then, he's pretended that he's Talon's very best friend. Canin thinks I don't know what he's really up to, but he underestimates me. He watches Talon's every move, copies him like he doesn't have a brain of his own, because he thought that would _prime _him for the position." Greyback paused, an intense look of disbelief present on his face. "Tell me, Remus. Is that the type of second-in-command you think I should have?"

Remus swallowed hard. "No, sir."

"No," Greyback agreed, "of course not. And when I think about it, they're all exactly the same. A bunch of suck-ups that would stop at nothing to win the position. Like it's some sort of _trophy _they'd be able to hold over everyone else's head."

As far as Remus was concerned, Greyback constantly held the fact that this was _his _pack over every single one of their heads. In fact, it occurred to Remus that Greyback might want him for his second-in-command for that very reason - just so he could prove that it was his pack, and he could do whatever the hell he pleased. Not for the first time, Remus realized how full of it Greyback really was.

"But you wouldn't do that, would you?" Greyback was watching him closely, almost like he might have known exactly what Remus was thinking.

Remus shook his head, unable to form the words at first. "No, sir," he finally got out.

"No," Greyback repeated, "I thought not. Which is exactly what I want you. I think you'll take it seriously - not use it as a status symbol. Of course, that also means that you'll need to assert yourself and put the others in their places if the need arises. If I'm ever away, you'd need to be able to take charge of the pack. Is that something you'd be able to do?"

"I…I don't know, sir." And Remus didn't. He had been hoping that what had happened with Talon was a one-time thing. He certainly wasn't prepared to make beating people up a regular occurrence, nor did he want to start doing such a thing on purpose. Then again, Remus hadn't found out much of anything yet that would help them in the war, and being Greyback's second-in-command could change that drastically.

Greyback leaned in closer, his lips almost touching the shell of Remus's ear. "Just like you did with Talon today," Greyback said simply, like it was no big deal to beat up someone else. "As I've said, your wolf will naturally know when it is appropriate to do so, and then all you have to do is put them in their places. _Make them bleed_." Greyback pulled away a bit, grinning once more. "Werewolves don't like that very much. It is in our nature to make others bleed, so nothing is more embarrassing for a werewolf than to have his own blood spilled."

Personally, Remus could think of at least a dozen things off the top of his head that were far more embarrassing than bleeding. This time, he failed to contain his smile at how little Greyback really knew.

Greyback, however, mistook his expression. "You like that idea, don't you? Taking your hands to them and _making them bleed_?"

Every time Greyback said those words, it made Remus want to shiver. The tone that Greyback used suggested that blood itself was some delectable food he couldn't quite resist. Much like that Death by Chocolate dessert that Remus had tried in a Muggle restaurant once.

"I don't know," Remus said again. He sighed. "This is still such a shock, and…I'm not sure I'm ready for..."

"I am," Greyback confidently cut him off. "This is all still very new to you, I know, but I wouldn't have asked you unless I was positive that you could do the job. I told you that I had my doubts when you first came, but in the short time that you've been here, you've proven yourself to me completely. Especially after today, I see that you are capable of handling things on your own. Of course, I won't force you to do it if you don't want to. That would just be asking you to disappoint me. Then again, I have a pretty good feeling that anyone else I pick will disappoint me, just as Talon has."

Remus hated being reminded of how far Talon had fallen. Technically, Talon had done absolutely nothing wrong; he had actually done everything right in suspecting Remus. Once Greyback eventually figured Remus out - and Remus was completely sure that he would - Remus was going to have a lot more to pay for than simply lying to Greyback. He had lost Greyback his second-in-command, one that Greyback would deem worthy once again when the truth came out.

Greyback clasped his hands behind his back and growled, which broke Remus out of his thoughts. "It's quite a sad day indeed," Greyback rumbled, "when I feel like my newest follower is the most capable of following in my footsteps."

Those words made Remus want to cringe. He didn't care what he ended up doing in the interest of keeping up his charade with Greyback; none of them would ever make him close to following in Greyback's footsteps.

"Remus?" Greyback asked after a moment of silence.

Realizing that Greyback was waiting for an answer, Remus's mind scrambled with his choices. At first, he had considered asking for some time to think about it, but Greyback's expression didn't suggest that he'd allow such a thing; he looked like he wanted an answer now.

When Remus really thought about it, however, he knew he couldn't say no. The chance of acquiring useful information was simply too great to pass up. It would require Remus to do things that made him immensely uncomfortable, but then again, this entire experience made him feel sick to his stomach. Would a few more things really be so bad?

Remus knew the real answer to that question, but before he could even begin to think about it, he nodded. Almost instantly, a wave of nausea flooded over him at the thought of everything that would entail, but he closed his eyes and fought it down. "Yes, sir," Remus tried to say as firmly as he could. He doubted that Greyback would accept it if he sounded scared or uncertain in any way. "I accept it."

That maniacal grin was back, seeming to split Greyback's face in two. Then just as quickly as it had come, it was gone, only to be replaced with a very serious expression. Greyback reached out and wrapped one clawed hand around Remus's throat, only tight enough to be uncomfortable. "Do keep in mind that this doesn't give you the right to abuse said position. You are allowed to discipline those beneath you, but only when they _deserve _it. If I find out you're beating others up just for the hell of it, I'll rip your throat out so fast you won't know what hit you. Understood?"

Greyback constantly beat everyone up just for the hell of it, so as usual, this was just another double standard for him. Not that Remus would want to do such things just because he could, but he still found it funny. Remus just nodded.

Greyback released Remus's throat, then immediately placed both his hands on Remus's shoulders. "Down," he ordered, forcing Remus to his knees.

Remus's heart pounded. Greyback had never wanted him on his knees before, not even when he'd first arrived. Even though it was much too late for such things, Remus wondered what he was getting himself into.

"This is just a formality," Greyback said casually, looking down his nose at Remus. "You have already proved your loyalty to me, and you're already well aware of what happens if you aren't loyal, but I like to do it this way anyway. Being my beta is much more important than simply _joining _my pack. It means that you're the second most powerful one here, but do keep in mind that _I _am still in charge of _everything_. Some of my betas have tended to forget that, and they let their power go to their heads. Like Talon. That's why you're down there - to remind you of your place. That you're still _beneath _me."

Without waiting for a response, Greyback leaned forward, his hands still in place on Remus's shoulders. He pressed down so hard, Remus's knees dug painfully into the wooden floor. "Now," Greyback said, "as my beta, a time may come when I might order you to do something that you may find uncomfortable or wrong. I don't _care _even if you do. If I order you to do something, you do it. _No questions asked_. Failure to comply will most likely result in your immediate and untimely death, because I do not take no for an answer. Especially not from my beta. But as I've already told you, if you are absolutely loyal to me, and you are ready to make such a commitment, you have nothing to fear. Am I clear?"

Even though Remus was terrified of what else Greyback could possibly expect from him, Remus forced himself to answer immediately. He didn't think that any hesitation on his part would look very good, so he said, "Yes, sir." He knew he was getting himself into something horrible that he might not be able to get himself out of. He just knew it, but he supposed that he would deal with that when the time came, just like he had dealt with his entire time here thus far.

"Wonderful," Greyback said cheerily, releasing his hold on Remus. "It's almost lunchtime, so I'll see you in the mess hall in a few minutes. I'm rather excited to see everyone else's expression when they find out. Especially Talon. He was so certain he had gotten you in trouble, and now…" Greyback growled with delight. "Should be rather amusing, hm?"

Greyback stepped around him and opened the door. Remus remained in his position, but he heard the door slam closed behind him. When he was certain he was alone, Remus bent his knees until his backside was resting on his heels. He remained in that position for a very long time.

A horrible sense of dread had settled into his stomach, coupled with the fear that Greyback would expect him to do something even worse than to turn a little boy. And the next time, it wouldn't even be a test; it would be a direct order that Greyback would expect his second-in-command to carry out without question.

Remus knew he needed to do this, whatever else Greyback expected of him. If Remus could obtain some sort of truly useful information for Dumbledore, then it would be worth it. Or so he kept telling himself. But when he really thought about, would any information be worth the price of his humanity? Because he was almost certain that that was something he might lose the longer he kept this up. In fact, he could already sense it, barely hanging on by a thread, and it scared him that the next time he lost his temper, that thread might just snap.

_To be continued..._


	10. Chapter 10: The Silent Predator

**Love Sees More 3: Greyback's Pack**

Chapter 10 - The Silent Predator

As soon as Remus got to his feet, he immediately found the wall of Greyback's shack. He leaned into it heavily with his shoulder, then rested his forehead against the wood as well. He really wasn't ready for this. Nor, he was certain, was the rest of the pack. He knew many of them had ill feelings towards him, and he really didn't blame them.

Remus had only been a member of the pack for about a month. Everyone else had been there for at least two years, and Remus already outranked them all - except for Greyback, of course. They wouldn't be ready to accept him as Greyback's second-in-command. There was no way. They might lie and put on a good show for Greyback - except for maybe Talon - but Remus was rather concerned about how they might treat him behind their alpha's back.

Remus wondered if his encounter with Talon and the fact that he had been called to Greyback's shack afterwards had gotten around to the rest of the pack yet. Talon would have certainly spread it around to at least his friends by now; he probably felt pretty proud that he had finally gotten Remus into trouble (even though he hadn't). If Talon had spread it around, Remus decided that that was not a good thing. When they found out that Remus was now the pack's beta wolf instead, he was certain that they would distrust him more than ever.

Despite what he had told Greyback, there was no way that Remus could take his hands to the others just because they showed him disrespect. He had with Talon, but that was because he had lost his temper. Talon had a way of pushing his buttons, which Remus was going to try and prevent in the future. He very much doubted that he'd ever feel like beating someone up simply because they were rude. At least, he hoped not.

Then again, if Remus wasn't able to exercise control over the rest of the pack, they'd have absolutely no respect for him. In that case, it would only be a matter of time before Greyback figured out that Remus really wasn't cut out for this position. Remus didn't want to think about what would happen then. Would Greyback mercifully return him to a lower a position? Or would Greyback perhaps be greatly offended that Remus had blatantly lied in order to obtain the position? The latter, he was sure, the prospect of which terrified him.

Remus felt backed into a corner. He had to make this position work for him. In all the time he had been there, he hadn't learned a damn thing to help them in the war. If Greyback figured out that Remus really wasn't trying as his beta wolf, then the chances that he'd gain any information at all would be pretty nonexistent.

Remus wondered if he would have been better off simply turning down Greyback's offer. Greyback had said that he wouldn't force Remus into the position, but Remus wasn't entirely sure how Greyback would have reacted to a negative response, especially when everyone else would have jumped at the chance. Perhaps that would have been a sign that Remus really wasn't suited to this pack at all, in which case, he wouldn't have been allowed to stay.

Letting out a heavy breath, Remus shook his head back and forth against the wood. He felt tiny splinters prickling into his forehead here and there, but he barely even noticed. He had the sensation that he was standing in the middle of a gigantic jigsaw puzzle, all of the pieces around him shifting constantly. They only went together one way, and if Remus moved the wrong one into place, then the entire thing might be beyond repair.

As much as he hated it in there, he sort of wanted to stay in Greyback's shack all day long, even though he knew he couldn't. Lunch was in just a few minutes, and Greyback was expecting him in the mess hall to announce Remus's new position. Very reluctantly, Remus pushed himself away from the wall and pulled the door open. He stood at the top of the three wooden steps for a very long time, trying to prepare himself for what might lie ahead of him.

He was more certain than ever that this was not going to turn out well, but he finally forced himself to descend the stairs. He paid extra attention to how he carried himself, forcing his shoulders back and standing up straighter than he normally did. It wasn't him at all; he wasn't one to go around with his chest puffed out like he was important, and it felt utterly awkward. But if he tried to _look_ the part, if he looked like he was indeed Greyback's second-in-command, perhaps that would garner some sort of respect on its own.

The entire compound seemed deserted. Everyone was probably already in the mess hall, waiting for the before-lunch meeting to begin. Remus really didn't want to go in there, but if he was indeed the last one to arrive, it really wouldn't do for him to keep them waiting. Especially now that he was Greyback's second-in-command, he was probably expected to be punctual, even more so than the others.

Squaring his shoulders even more and drawing a deep breath, Remus ascended the three steps to the door of the mess hall. When he reached out for the door handle, that was when he realized his hand was shaking terribly. This was bad. It really wasn't appropriate for Greyback's beta to be shaking from fear, and Greyback would know it was fear. It was one of those things that he insisted he could smell on people.

When Remus was certain that he was getting precariously close to being late, it was only then that he pushed the door open. Just as he had suspected, it looked like the hall was full. They all looked up expectantly when he entered, like they had been waiting for him.

A wave of whispers went through the crowd, but the werewolf that immediately caught Remus's eye was Talon. He was staring at Remus wide-eyed (as wide-eyed as possible anyway with one eye still partially swollen shut from his last beating from Greyback). He looked genuinely shocked, almost as if he hadn't been expecting Remus to return at all. Or perhaps he had been expecting Remus to be in even worse shape than Talon himself.

"Wonderful!" Greyback exclaimed. "Everyone is here then."

"Sir," Talon said quietly, looking at Greyback, "I believe Lupin is late."

"I'm well aware of the time!" Greyback roared. "I don't need _you_ to remind me!" When Talon glared down at the floor, Greyback turned his attention to Remus. "I suspect you were simply preparing yourself for this important occasion."

"Yes, sir," Remus said, trying to sound as confident as possible. He looked at Talon then, giving him the most complacent stare that he could. If Remus knew Talon at all, then he was going to go out of his way to cause even more trouble for Remus now. Remus just wanted Talon to know that he now in very good standing with Greyback. Apparently it worked; Talon looked rattled.

Greyback hummed in response, then he also gazed at Talon. "Yes, you see, Talon?" Greyback asked. "As I'm sure you're aware, Remus and I were just speaking. I was well aware of where he was and that he was, in fact, on his way. So don't you dare presume to tell me who is and is not breaking a rule when it's happened in my very presence! I have eyes, and this tattling is getting rather old, you know," he said tiredly and rolled his eyes.

Talon looked positively livid now, but for once, he seemed to know better than to anger Greyback further. "Yes, sir," he grumbled in between clenched teeth.

Greyback glared at Talon for a very long time. Remus almost thought Greyback might attack him again, but then Greyback seemed to let it go. Remus assumed that he was simply much more anxious to make the new announcement than to bother with disciplining anyone at the moment.

"Now that that's all settled," Greyback said, beginning to pace in between the lines of werewolves as he had a habit of doing during meetings. "As I told you, I've been thinking very carefully about which one of you is the most deserving of the title of my second-in-command. I've come to a decision, and to be honest, it's actually quite sad that it has come to this. Not that I don't have confidence in my choice. I wouldn't have picked him otherwise." He paused with his back to Remus, his eyes narrowed at the others. "But it is _very_ sad that I feel the one most capable of holding the second most important position here…is also our newest member."

Those were the words Remus had been fearing the most. Somehow, the prospect of being Greyback's beta wolf didn't seem half as terrifying when it had just been him and Greyback that had known. Now that the rest of the pack had been informed of it, it felt so much more real to him. So much more of a responsibility that he knew he was going to have to live up to.

Whispers broke out at once. Those who were standing close around Talon turned to him, covering their mouths with their hands as they spoke to him. Talon, predictably, looked angrier than Remus could ever remember seeing him, his eyes narrowed in hatred and his face turning beet red. Others stood on their tiptoes to get a look at Remus over the crowd. Remus hated that feeling - that he was being watched, surveyed.

"I did not ask for anyone's opinion on the matter, DID I?" Greyback asked, his voice rising to a shout at the end.

Silence fell immediately, but Remus always wondered why Greyback needed to raise his voice at all. They all knew very well that Greyback detested such whispering, and even more, he despised being interrupted in any way during a speech. It was an obvious shock, of course, that Greyback had chosen Remus at all, but it was rather moronic to do anything that would anger Greyback further.

But as Greyback had said, it was exactly that sort of thinking that had led to Greyback choosing him at all. Greyback wanted someone who could stand up for himself, but also someone who would listen to him without question. Remus was never one to talk back to people, or to deliberately do something that he knew others wouldn't like, even if it was Greyback. Remus supposed that that was a difficult thing for some people - to keep their feelings quiet - even when they were supposed to.

Remus hated that. He hated the idea that he did anything at all that pleased Greyback. He hated that he seemed to fit Greyback's "mold" even when he kept telling himself that he wouldn't. The very idea made his skin crawl and made his stomach tie itself into knots. But he'd been feeling those things off and on ever since he had arrived in this place, so what else was new?

Greyback took several steps closer to the other werewolves, staring down at them menacingly. "But maybe I _should_ ask for your opinions, hm? It seems that many of you disagree with my decision since you were all so quick to talk a moment ago. Please, if you feel that I have made an error in judgment, do speak up. I would _hate_ for there to be _dissention_ in my pack, after all." Greyback's tone, however, was dangerously close to a growl, which made it very clear that no one was to speak unless they had a death wish.

No one did. No one even moved, except for their eyes, which were all darting around the room at various places, trying to look at anything but Greyback himself.

"No one?" Greyback asked, then he snorted. "It's funny. You're all keen to talk when you don't have permission to do so, but when I ask you to, no one says a word." He started stalking back and forth again. "There's nothing anyone wants to say about the appointment of Remus as my beta?" He looked back and forth across them, almost like he was daring them to speak; still, no one moved. "Well, just remember that you had your chance. If I hear _one word_ from _any_ of you outside of this room about how Remus is _wrong_ for this position, you will pay dearly."

Remus struggled against the urge to close his eyes and lean into the wall; it wouldn't be very appropriate for Greyback's second-in-command to look ill at such words. Just like Remus had hated the idea of Talon getting into trouble with Greyback because of him, he certainly didn't want anyone else here to be put into that position. He didn't really care one way or the other for any of them - except for Althea - but the last thing he wanted was to cause them pain of any sort.

"Yes," Greyback hummed happily, causing Remus to wonder if he had bipolar disorder. Then he felt like laughing, and it was all he could do to hold it in. There was a hell of a lot wrong with Greyback, so much so that something like being bipolar would be the least of his problems.

"As I was saying," Greyback when on, "Remus is now my second-in-command. I expect you all to show him the exact same respect and consideration that you show me. If you feel _uncomfortable_ with him being above you, or with taking orders from him - and I know that some of you do despite your _cowardly_ attempts to prove otherwise - I couldn't care less. You better learn to suck it up and damn quick. I will not tolerate my pack questioning me anymore. If you do, then you certainly don't belong here." Greyback paused, that sneering expression taking over his face. "Is that in any way unclear?"

A small murmur of "no sir"s went through the crowd. Many of them still seemed too afraid to speak.

"Very good. Not that I need to explain myself to any of you, but just so you know, I chose Remus, because I feel he's the most suited to the position right now. Curiously enough, he's the only one in this room to _never_ show me the least bit of disrespect. To never talk back to me. To never QUESTION me and my decisions." He regarded the pack thoughtfully, tilting his to the side the tiniest bit. "If you really want to know how to become the second most important wolf here, then I suggest you keep an eye on him. He sets a good example. One that you should all be following already, without me needing to remind you every time I turn around. Just…don't follow him around like a sick pup, copying his every move. That only succeeds in making you look desperate." Greyback threw Canin a pointed look, causing him to turn bright red, a color which clashed with his straw-colored hair.

"I believe that's everything," Greyback said. "Everyone may go to lunch now." Everyone started to file towards the exit, but then Greyback added, "Oh, except for Remus and Talon. I'd like you two to stay."

Remus froze in his tracks, wondering what Greyback could possibly want from him now. He had been looking forward to some time away from the alpha wolf for a while. Remus had been around him so much today that he almost thought he was getting used to the smell, which was something that he definitely did not want - to be the least bit comfortable around Greyback.

Talon had stopped as well, retreating into the corner that was furthest from Remus. He kept giving Remus dirty looks, his eyes furtively going to Greyback every once in a while and then quickly looking away before Greyback could notice. For the first time since Remus had arrived, he thought Talon truly looked scared.

When everyone else was gone, Greyback turned to Remus and said, "Your first test as my beta will come immediately after lunch. I have a guest coming to the compound, and we will be having a meeting in my shack. I expect complete privacy during that time, and we will not be interrupted for any reason. If any problems arise within the pack, you will deal with them as you see fit. Understand?"

Remus nodded quickly. "Yes, sir." All the while, he was wondering why Greyback would make such an announcement in front of Talon. It was almost like he was inviting Talon to cause some sort of trouble during said meeting just to make Remus look bad. Then again, perhaps that was what Greyback was counting on; Remus would truly be tested in that case.

"Very good. Then you may go."

Remus hesitated for the briefest moment. He was partially curious about would transpire between Talon and Greyback when he was gone, even though he thought he probably knew. Without another word, Remus turned and left the hall.

Once he descended the steps, he stopped and pressed himself up against the wall of the building, listening carefully. Remus almost got the feeling that Greyback had wanted him to.

Remus could hear Greyback's heavy boots noisily making their way across the floor of the shack. Greyback laughed. "Oh, don't worry, I'm through beating the living shite out of you. I've been doing nothing but for the last month since Remus arrived, and it's obviously done nothing to change your frame of mind. Nor do I have the time at the moment. I have much more important things to attend to, but suffice it to say that you gambled away your position in this pack," he said, his voice dripping with pity and disappointment. "You _handed_ it to Remus like it meant nothing to you. You have no one to blame for that but yourself. Perhaps Remus now holding that position will get through that thick skull of yours. I am TIRED of you! If you wish to remain a member of this pack, I will not tolerate your antics any further! No more this of tattling, no more showing disrespect to your superiors. I expect it to stop right this minute. You've used up all your chances. You won't get another."

Apparently, without waiting for a response of any sort, Remus could hear Greyback making his way towards the door. Remus hurried away around the corner of the building before he emerged. Even though he had a feeling that Greyback wanted him to hear all that, he certainly didn't want to take the chance of sticking around in case he was wrong.

Althea was waiting for him, leaning up against a tree not far from the shack. She had her arms crossed over her chest, and she smiling at him. "I'm impressed," she said. "I thought for sure you were going to come out of Greyback's shack looking worse than Talon. What on earth did you say to him?"

Remus stood blinking at her for several seconds. "You mean you're not angry with me?"

"Why would I be angry?"

Remus thought that much was obvious. "Because aside from Greyback, I outrank everyone now and I've only been here for a little over a month. I'd wager to guess a lot of them aren't very happy with me right now."

Althea shrugged. "I'm _relieved_ he didn't see fit to hurt you. I was worried there for a moment. I told you, if something happened to you, then who would I talk to? But, erm…you're not suddenly going to stop talking to me, are you?"

"Why would I do that?"

"Because I'm just a lowly epsilon," Althea said quietly. "When Talon was the second-in-command, he wouldn't be caught dead talking to one of us unless it was to yell at us for something."

"Don't be silly." Remus smiled warmly. "I told you that you're the only sane person here to talk to. If I didn't hang around you, I'd likely go as nutters as the rest of them."

"Well, it's better you than me anyway," Althea giggled. "I could never be suited to a job like that."

Remus wanted to tell her that he wasn't either, that this was the last thing he'd ever wanted to do when he came here, but he couldn't.

"Actually," Althea continued, "better you than a lot of people here. You're _way_ better than Talon ever was, and better than someone like Canin could ever hope to be."

Remus knew she meant it to be a compliment, but it made him feel rather uncomfortable being referred to as a "better" beta wolf than the others. He wasn't entirely sure whether that was a good or bad thing. Attempting to shrug it off, he said, "I didn't say anything to Greyback. He wasn't angry with me in the least…just with Talon."

"How much do you want to bet that he's going to get killed before the next full moon?"

"Nothing," Remus said seriously. When Althea gave him a funny look, he added, "Well, we've nothing to bet with in the first place."

She smiled at him again, leading the way into the woods for their lunch. Remus followed along behind her quietly. Althea probably wouldn't mind seeing Talon gone from this pack entirely. Truthfully, neither would Remus, but _not_ at the price of Talon's life. Remus hadn't come here to bring such dreadful consequences into their lives, especially not for things they didn't even do. He'd come here for information, none of which he had gotten yet. Damn it, but it was frustrating!

While they were eating, Remus had almost forgotten that he had just been put in charge of the rest of the pack. They ended up "joking" around again about a better place where they would be accepted. If only everyone else in the pack was like Althea, this whole thing would have been so much easier. It would have been a much nicer atmosphere for one, and it would be a hell of a lot easier to change their minds about remaining with Greyback.

When they were returning to the main part of the compound afterwards, Remus saw Greyback walking with someone - the man that he had planned a meeting with. He was a short, heavy man wearing black robes. Both he and Greyback were walking towards the latter's shack from the front of the colony. Up until that moment, Remus had completely forgotten that someone was even coming to see Greyback. Remus had been concerned with so many other things, and it hadn't even occurred to him that this could be his chance to finally get some useful information. His heart began pounding with excitement.

"It's Carrow," Remus gasped in surprise. He hadn't even meant to say anything out loud.

Althea looked confused. "Who?"

Remus threw a sideways glance at Althea, then quickly back at Carrow and Greyback. Briefly hoping that she wouldn't make this difficult, Remus explained, "Amycus Carrow. He's a Death Eater. Much higher up than Greyback. I wonder what he's doing here."

"Planning some attack."

Remus looked at her sharply. "Do Death Eaters come here a lot?"

"No idea. Not the ones that I know anyway, but that's not very many. The only ones I know are Malfoy and that crazy lady with the wild hair - what's her face?"

"Bellatrix Lestrange?"

"That's her. And I've never seen them in person. I just saw them in the paper a lot before I came here."

"No, they're way too high up to be sent to relay information to the likes of Greyback."

Remus watched them until they entered Greyback's shack, the door closing behind. Merlin, how Remus wished he was a fly on the wall inside that building. The chance to obtain some information was finally staring him right in the face for the first time since he had arrived, and he was missing it!

He looked closely at Althea, not quite sure how to put his thoughts. He thought he was making some real progress with her, but if she learned that he was a spy so early on, it could put his entire mission in jeopardy. "Althea…" he began. He battled with himself for several moments before deciding to throw caution to the wind. "Fancy doing a little spying?" If she took it the wrong way, at least he'd still have a chance to play it off as a joke.

Althea looked utterly shocked, her eyes and mouth both going wide. "Remus! I'm surprised at you!" Remus had been about to backpedal, but then Althea's expression faded. "Okay," she said simply, shrugging and immediately heading towards Greyback's shack.

Remus stared after her, dumbstruck. "Wait, what?" he cried, getting his legs moving again.

"So I'm curious!"

"You're curious and _you're_ surprised at _me_?"

"Yes!" She kept walking as Remus fell into step next to her. She looked around and lowered her voice in case anyone was listening. "You've just been appointed Greyback's beta. You shouldn't be doing things like this, especially not so soon."

"So it'd be okay if I waited a couple months?"

"Well, no, but still! You're not even going to wait? If Greyback finds out that you just turned around and betrayed him..." She trailed off, shivering.

"I won't tell anyone if you won't."

"Same goes for you," Althea whispered. "I'm just a lowly epsilon. If Greyback finds out I'm spying, I'd probably be killed. If you were found out, you'd probably just be beaten and demoted."

"I don't know," Remus mused. "Sometimes I get the feeling that Greyback wants me to hear things. Like after the last meeting, I hung around outside for a while and listened to him give Talon what was supposed to be his final warning."

"I'm telling you, he's not going to make it much longer."

Remus shook his head. "He looked scared - I mean truly scared for the first time since I met him." He sighed heavily. "Then again, I'm not sure if he'll ever learn his lesson."

They fell into silence as they drew closer to Greyback's shack. Remus could hear the voices from inside, but they were too muffled to make out. He and Althea looked around, checking to make sure that no one was watching. Remus led the way around to the back of the shack, figuring that it would be safer there, away from the prying eyes of the others, and away from the door if Greyback and Carrow suddenly decided to exit.

Remus and Althea both leaned up against the wall and stood on their tiptoes, trying to get as close to the high, tiny window as possible, but their effort was futile. The voices inside were still much too low to make out anything clearly. Remus frowned in frustration, wondering her perhaps Greyback had allowed Carrow to use magic to safeguard their conversation. "I can't hear a thing," he whispered.

Just then, Althea looked up at the window and pointed to it. "Lift me up."

Remus's heart thumped again in his chest. Could he really be about to find out something useful for once? Could Remus even trust Althea to be honest with him about what she heard? Remus, however, was out of options. He threaded his fingers together and crouched down, providing Althea with a step. She placed one of her shoes in his hands, boosting herself up and clinging desperately to the wooden wall to stay upright. She finally caught her balance, and they both stilled.

The window was much too high for her to see inside, but perhaps now she was close enough to at least hear what they were saying. Remus waited for what hopefully would be something that would help Dumbledore.

Althea listened for a long time, then looked down at Remus. "Carrow wants to know if Greyback wants in," she whispered down to him.

"In on what?"

Althea listened again, then shook her head. "Not sure. He just promised that Greyback'll get kids to eat." She looked disgusted. "That's gross. During a transformation is one thing, but to eat them otherwise…"

According to Remus, it was never okay to eat children at all, but he didn't say anything.

"Greyback said yes," Althea went on.

"Of course he did. Are they saying anything about where or when?"

"Not yet. Oh! Greyback wants to know if he can bring you along. Test you out further, he said."

Remus grimaced. "Wonderful," he muttered. He wasn't sure if that was a bad thing or a good thing. Surely, if it involved children, then Remus would try his hardest to prevent harm from coming to any of them, but then his cover would likely be blown. Greyback would never trust him again if he didn't cooperate.

The men in the shack both raised their voices just then, because for the first time, Remus could hear them clearly.

"How dare you!" Greyback roared. "I can't go a moment without being questioned round here, now you think I've gone loopy, too?!"

"In case you've forgotten," Carrow shouted back, "I'm much higher up than you! Don't take that sort of tone with me! You're worried about eating children, but my priority is the Dark Lord! I have every right to question the loyalty of any outside parties you choose to bring into this!"

"They're arguing about whether or not you're trustworthy," Althea said.

"Yeah, I can hear them now," Remus said in amusement. He found it oddly funny that for once, Greyback was the one being shouted at and put in his place by a superior. Perhaps that was why he went out of his way to exercise control over his pack, because he certainly wasn't worth much to the Death Eaters.

The voices seemed to fade again after that, and even Althea shook her head, straining to get closer to the window. "I think they're moving towards the front of the shack. I can't hear them now."

They waited for a while, but only silence met their ears. Remus was about to let Althea back down to the ground, but then Greyback's voice rose once more. "JUST GET OUT! You saw fit to invite me, and I'll bring whomever I deem worthy. If the Dark Lord has a problem with it, he can come tell me himself instead of sending his little messengers."

Carrow laughed loudly. "Like the Dark Lord would ever address _you_ directly, but do as you wish."

The front door of the shack slammed a few seconds later, and Althea jumped at the sound. She lost her balance and toppled out of Remus's hands. She let out a yelp and managed to catch herself on the edge of the wall before she fell to the ground.

Remus frowned deeply. Surely her yell would alert someone to their presence, so he grabbed Althea's hand. "We better go," he said, pulling her for the safety of the woods.

They quickly picked their way through some bushes until they reached a clearing not far from the mouth of the cave at the back of the compound. Remus leaned up against a tree, pressing his head back against it and looking up at the clear blue sky peeking through the leaves.

His first instinct was to inform Dumbledore at once, but honestly, what did he have to tell him? That Greyback had something planned with the Death Eaters and Voldemort, something that he wanted Remus to join in on. Remus had no idea of the details, or of how or when this would happen. He didn't know which was worse - not knowing anything at all, or having such useless information dangled in front of his face.

"What in the bloody hell could Greyback want me to do now?" he asked.

Althea was silent for a moment, watching him, but then she asked, "Remus?" Her tone was uncertain, cautious.

"What?"

Althea opened her mouth, but then she closed it again, apparently reconsidering her words. "It's nothing." She looked down at her hands, rubbing at some dirt on the back of one palm. "Never mind."

Remus tilted his head. "It's not nothing. Tell me what you were going to say."

"No, really, don't worry about it."

Remus smirked. "Not that I'll do anything if you still say no, but your beta wolf commands you to answer."

Althea snickered loudly. "That's exactly what I was going to say! You're not-"

Suddenly, Althea was cut off. Through the woods, near the outside wall of the cave, Talon's loud voice carried to them on the wind. "I'm telling you, he has lost it! Greyback has finally lost it! Making someone like _Lupin_ his beta wolf…! It boggles the mind!"

There were several soft murmurs from the crowd that had gathered around Talon. It was too far away to hear them clearly, but this was exactly what Remus didn't want to deal with at the moment - an upstart Talon. Again. And possibly those who were listening to him getting out of hand themselves.

Althea gave Remus a look of complete disbelief. "Er…well, you know," she said like it was the most obvious thing in the world, "ranting in the middle of the woods about how crazy Greyback is isn't exactly the sign of a sane mind, either."

Remus bit at his bottom lip in nervousness, but didn't reply. He was silently hoping that the situation would pass. He knew Greyback would want him to do something about such blatant disrespect, but hopefully Greyback was still busy with seeing Carrow out of the compound. Remus would just pretend that he hadn't heard anything, and hopefully, Greyback wouldn't to be the wiser.

That, however, wasn't the case. Remus wasn't even sure where he had come from, but Greyback was suddenly standing just to Remus's right, at the edge of the clearing. No one said anything for a long time, but it vaguely occurred to Remus just how much like an animal Greyback could be, stalking his prey like the silent predator that he was.

The expression on Greyback's face was somewhere between anger, curiosity, and excitement. Remus wasn't even sure how anyone could display that many emotions at once, but Greyback somehow did. It was very unsettling when he looked at Remus like that, almost like Greyback knew something that he didn't.

"Remus," Greyback said calmly, gesturing in the direction of the cave, "are you going to let them talk about me like that?"

Remus's first instinct was to tell Greyback that if he had a problem with it, then she should deal with it himself. Not that Remus wanted to see Talon hurt any further than he was, but the thought of Greyback deliberately forcing Remus to take care of it rubbed him the wrong way. For detesting the tattling so much, Greyback wasn't much better with sending his minions to deal with things that he didn't want to be bothered with.

And what could Remus do? He certainly couldn't ignore it now, even though he desperately wanted to. If Remus said yes, that he was going to let Talon and the others speak like that, that wouldn't go over well with Greyback at all. Just as Greyback had told him that very morning, a time would come when he would order Remus to do something that he probably found uncomfortable, but he was expected to comply anyway. Remus just hadn't been expecting that time to come so soon.

_To be continued…_


	11. Chapter 11: The Breaking Point

**Love Sees More 3: Greyback's Pack**

Chapter 11 - The Breaking Point

Greyback was watching him, waiting for an answer. Remus felt absolutely frozen to the spot, a hundred different possibilities seeming to race through his mind in a matter of moments. Then Remus realized how distinctly uncomfortable Greyback's gaze made him, almost like he was reading every single one of those thoughts as they passed through Remus's consciousness.

Remus had no idea how to even begin to respond. Actually, that was a lie; he knew perfectly well what Greyback wanted, but he was trying desperately to come up with some way out of it. Remus's eyes went from Greyback to Althea, and she looked just as worried as Remus himself.

Perhaps she already had figured him out. Her expression certainly made it seem that way. Remus had been spending this time trying to figure her out, to come up with some way to sway her over to Dumbledore's side, but he wondered if she knew perfectly well what he was doing there. She had already made it quite clear that he was completely different than the rest of the pack. Had she maybe figured out even more than that?

Focusing on Althea for a moment longer, Remus silently wished that Greyback would just leave. That he would think of something much more important to attend to, or that he would decide to take matters into his own hands. Anything to get Remus out of this now precarious moment that he found himself in.

But Greyback was still there, his expression seeming to grow more annoyed by the moment. "Remus," Greyback said, his voice now bordering on a growl, "I asked if you were going to let them talk about me like that. Like I've lost it. Like I've gone mental for making you my second-in-command." He tilted his head, and when he spoke again, his tone was distinctly curious. "You don't think I've lost it, do you, Remus?"

The question sent chills down Remus's spine. Greyback didn't ask such questions for an answer, he did so for effect. Almost like he was challenging Remus to answer that truthfully. And when Remus thought about his honest answer to that, it made him want to laugh. Again. What the hell was the matter with him, always getting the urge to laugh? One of these days, he would be unable to contain it, and Merlin help him if he ever laughed in Greyback's face.

Remus took a deep breath and closed his eyes until the urge passed. By then, he knew he was getting awfully close to Greyback losing his temper completely, so Remus forced himself to shake his head. "No, sir."

Greyback grinned. "No. No, I thought not." He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned into the tree next to him. He looked oddly elegant for someone so large and hulking. "The question is, what are you going to do about it?"

Remus knew he didn't have a choice. He had already dragged this conversation out for as long as he dared. If he hesitated any longer, Greyback would know without a doubt that Remus wasn't really taking his newfound position seriously.

Perhaps if it was just him, Remus would have considered getting the hell out of there, but there was so much more to think about. Not only was Dumbledore still counting on him to learn any useful information at all, but based on what Remus had heard of Greyback's conversation with Carrow, there was a possibility that Remus might be able to save some children in the process. He couldn't fail now. There was way too much at stake.

Steeling himself, Remus straightened up and pushed away from the tree against which he had been leaning. Remus didn't even look at Greyback again; he thought he could feel Greyback's anger growing, and he wasn't about to press his luck. Instead, Remus simply turned on his heel and headed off in the direction of the other werewolves near the cave.

He had no clue what he was even going to do when he got there. He still wasn't about to take his hands to any of them, at least not yet, no matter what Greyback expected of him. Perhaps he could talk his way out of it. Remus knew that that very idea seemed almost laughable where Greyback was concerned, but he sure as hell wasn't going to lower himself to Greyback's level if he could help it. Not again.

Talon was leaning up against the outside wall of the cave casually, surrounded by the rest of the pack's epsilons. Talon was still muttering about what a fruitcake Greyback had turned into, although much more quietly now, almost like he realized that he might have been overheard.

As Remus approached, he could hear Greyback behind him, following him, curious as to what Remus was going to do. That made Remus wonder if Althea was coming as well. Remus wished she wouldn't. She wasn't involved in this in the least, and he'd rather that she didn't see him do whatever he needed to do. After all, if he was trying to gain her trust, it wouldn't help if he started becoming more like the others.

When Talon looked up and saw Remus and Greyback approaching, he didn't look the least bit scared like Remus expected him to. Rather, he looked quite bored. It was the first time that Remus wondered if Talon was purposely trying to get himself thrown out of the pack. Of course, that also meant death, but was it possible that Talon was so fed up with the way things had turned out for him that he might have preferred such a fate?

"You know," Remus told him coolly, "if you have a problem with the way this pack is run, perhaps you should address your concerns to our alpha wolf directly. As I recall, you had that opportunity just before lunch not more than two hours ago, and you chose to say nothing."

Talon rolled his eyes, but when they shifted to Greyback a moment later, fear flickered there for the briefest moment. "Oh, please," Talon muttered. "It's not any surprise that I don't like you. I'll never trust you, I'll never respect you, and I don't care who knows."

"Be that as it may, you will abide by our alpha wolf's rules for as long as you are a member of this pack," Remus snapped. "I don't _care_ if you don't like me, because believe me, the feeling is mutual. But Greyback has made it quite clear that unless you spoke up at the meeting, you were all to keep your feelings on the matter to yourselves. What part of that did you not understand?" When Talon didn't show any sign of responding, Remus added, "Not to mention, disrespecting me is one thing, but under no circumstances are you permitted to speak ill of our alpha wolf."

Remus was partially disturbed by how easily his words came. He wasn't even sure where they had come from. Up until a moment ago, he had been completely unsure of what he wanted to say, but now it all seemed to spill out. Perhaps Greyback had seen something in him after all, something that did suit him to this position. Remus shivered at that thought.

The rest of the epsilons that were gathered around all seemed to bow their heads and shrink back from the scene. They had all been keen to agree with Talon before, but now that Remus and Greyback were there, none of them wanted to be involved.

Remus didn't look, but he could tell that Greyback was hovering not far behind him, the smell that followed him everywhere being only one of the tells. "Indeed," Greyback hummed. "I thought you were all clear on that. Did I fail to explain myself properly?"

"No, sir," several of the epsilons muttered. Then one of them that Remus recognized as Rufus Phinx stepped forward and said, "We're sorry, sir. We were out of line. It won't happen again."

Rufus was more or less the self-appointed leader of the epsilons. He certainly stood out, being one of the few gingers in the pack, his hair brighter red than anyone else's. When he transformed, his fur almost looked like it was on fire, and some of his "friends" (Remus wasn't sure if any of the werewolves were truly friends) had taken to calling him Red.

At least, he had been the leader of the epsilons until Talon had been demoted. Talon was never happy unless he was in charge of something. Since there were no longer any werewolves beneath him, he was trying desperately to assert his dominance over the rest of his rank. None of them seemed to be having it, however, certainly not if Talon was going to be getting them into trouble.

"No," Greyback said, "I don't think it _will_ happen again." His eyes darted quickly to Talon before he added, "Unless any of you have something else to say, then you may go. Except for Remus and Talon, of course."

As much as Remus hated having an audience, especially if Greyback expected him to actually become physical, he didn't exactly fancy being alone with Greyback and Talon either. Greyback normally liked the others to watch when he disciplined someone so they could be an example. If he was sending everyone else away, it terrified Remus to think about what he had in mind.

Some of the epsilons lowered their heads and shuffled away, but a few others remained behind, throwing uncertain glances at Talon. It almost seemed like they were hesitant to leave him alone, afraid of what might happen to him.

When they didn't make any move to leave, Greyback said in an uncharacteristically calm voice, "I said you may go."

Even though they seemed concerned for Talon, no one wanted to risk angering Greyback, so the rest of the epsilons followed the others into the woods. Talon himself, however, still seemed very bored by the entire situation. He was leaning against the wall of the cave, alternately yawning and rolling his eyes.

For the first time, Remus looked back the way he and Greyback had come. Althea was standing quite a distance away, hiding behind a tree, watching the scene. Remus wished that she would leave too, because he did not want her to see whatever it was Greyback had in mind, but she showed no signs of moving.

Greyback leaned heavily into the wall of the cave, crossing his arms over his chest. He considered Talon for a very long time before he asked, "So what do you think we should do with him, Remus? Physical punishment hasn't worked. Losing ranks hasn't worked. Threatening him hasn't worked. I'm about out of ideas here. Not to mention patience."

Remus suppressed a shiver. He knew exactly what Greyback had in mind, because Talon was out of chances. Greyback was certainly on what he considered to be his final option - killing Talon. Only he didn't say so, because Remus knew Greyback wanted him to say it first. Almost like that would make it Remus's idea.

As big of a bastard as Talon was, Remus didn't want him to killed. Certainly not because of him. After all, Talon was absolutely correct in his suspicions of Remus. Talon wasn't the brightest crayon in the box, making his thoughts known as often as he did, but he didn't deserve to killed by Greyback, either. Remus didn't think there was anyone in the world who did deserve that kind of fate.

But Remus knew his back was up against the wall. He doubted very much there was anything he could say that would change Greyback's mind, at least not without turning Greyback against him in the process. Besides, Remus was fairly certain that Greyback was now determined to kill Talon regardless; Greyback had made it very clear that Talon would not get another chance. If Remus didn't go along with it, he didn't think that would bode very well for him.

"Kill him, sir," Remus bit out, and in that moment, he didn't think he could have ever hated himself more.

Perhaps that was the first time Talon ever truly looked surprised. His eyes were large and round, just a few shades lighter than Sirius's, in fact. It was almost eerie how much their appearance reminded Remus of his best friend, but the similarities ended there. Where Sirius's eyes were warm and friendly, Talon's were cold and calculating.

Greyback, on the other hand, seemed rather pleased with this, for that large toothy grin spread across his face once again. He inhaled deeply, almost like he was sniffing Talon, seeing how good he would taste. "He thinks we should kill you, Talon."

Remus had no idea where Greyback had gotten "we". Remus only hoped to Merlin that Greyback wouldn't see fit to include him in this. It was one thing to tell Greyback to do such a thing and to see it happening, but there was no way in hell Remus would participate in it. Remus had a pretty good idea what killing involved, seeing as Greyback like to eat live things. He knew very well that Remus didn't share his tastes, but perhaps that was what Greyback was counting on. Maybe Greyback would use it to see whether or not Remus was truly loyal to him.

Talon didn't look like he thought Greyback was serious. Surely he didn't think that Greyback was bluffing? Because if Remus knew anything for sure, it was that Greyback didn't play around with such threats. If Greyback said he was going to kill someone, then Remus was absolutely sure that he would. Or maybe Talon had been in so tightly with Greyback at one point, he didn't even believe it possible that it had come to this. Remus almost couldn't, either. Couldn't believe that the once proud werewolf who had had the entire pack - save for Greyback - under him had fallen so far. All because Remus had gotten the foolish idea that he would ever truly be able to fit in with such animals.

But what did it say about Remus that he would tell Greyback to do such a thing, that he would be willing to watch as it happened just to keep up with some charade? Just six short weeks ago, Remus would have thought the very idea was absurd that he would stand for something like this, no matter what kind of information he was trying to get out of it. Perhaps Remus really wasn't much better than the rest of the werewolves after all.

"Kill me then!" Talon yelled. His tone was somewhere in between frustration and disbelief, like he really didn't think that Greyback was capable of doing so, at least not to him. Then he did something Remus hadn't been expecting at all. Talon squared his shoulders and stepped forward until his nose was mere inches from Greyback's.

The alpha wolf was, of course, very territorial and hated to have his personal space invaded in such a defiant manner. Greyback bared his teeth and straightened up to his full height, looking down his nose at Talon. It was then that Remus knew this was not going to end well.

Talon, however, didn't seem the least bit frightened. Instead, he said, "When the truth comes out about Lupin - and it will - then you'll realize what a mistake you've made. Not only for trusting him-" he thrust a finger carelessly in Remus's direction "-but for losing me in the process." He stopped for a moment and sneered. "You'll never find anyone who is more loyal to you than I was."

Greyback scoffed, stalking even closer to Talon, who immediately shrunk back. "Talon, Talon," Greyback said sadly, shaking his head, "if you were loyal to me, I wouldn't have to keep reminding you of your place!" His clawed hand shot out so fast, Talon barely had time to react. He tried to step away from it, but Greyback was much too fast. Greyback's hand closed around Talon's throat, forcing him back into the wall of the cave.

Talon's mouth opened in an expression of pain, but no sound came out. His hands went furiously to Greyback's, trying desperately to pry them away from his neck, but Greyback was the stronger one by far. Talon's nails scraped against the skin on the back of Greyback's hand, but he didn't even seem to notice.

Greyback licked his lips. "It's been a while since I've had a human meal."

Remus couldn't stand to stay there any longer. He didn't care if Greyback was expecting him to participate or even to watch. Remus feared that if he stayed, he would be sick anyway, and that wouldn't do for Greyback's second-in-command. Remus took a few steps backward, almost feeling too shocked and disgusted to move properly. It was when Talon's first scream pierced the autumn air that Remus finally turned and disappeared into the shelter of the woods.

Talon's screams chased him as he ran, a staunch reminder of what he was allowing to happen back at the cave. Brambles and twigs caught at his clothes as he went, tearing even more holes in his already threadbare attire. In the back of his mind, Remus imagined that those branches were Talon's hands, grabbing at him for help, reminding him that he could have stopped this if he'd wanted. That he _should_ have stopped it.

Remus kept on going until Talon's screams died, either because he was too far away or because Talon couldn't scream anymore. As much as Remus hoped it was the former, he very well knew that it wasn't. Remus's breaths were coming harsh and fast when he caught himself on a tree, clinging to it with his hands so tightly like it was a lifeline, like it might save him from the hell his life had become. He pressed his forehead into the rough bark and closed his eyes, trying not to think about the state that Talon's body might be in now.

He didn't know how long he stood there, holding on to the tree. He almost hoped that if he waited long enough with his eyes closed, that he'd be back at Grimmauld Place the next time he opened them. Remus knew that was a silly thing to wish for, but he would have given anything in that moment to return to his home. To put this entire nightmare behind him, to hell with Dumbledore's plans.

Remus remembered the last conversation he'd had with Sirius before he had come to this god forsaken place. Sirius had accused him of not putting enough serious thought into this, of not knowing what he was getting himself into. Remus had insisted that he knew very well what he was doing, but now, he didn't think he'd had any clue at all. Neither did Dumbledore for that matter. Remus didn't think Dumbledore would have even suggested it at all if he knew everything this entailed. And Remus didn't think he ever would have agreed to it had he known everything he'd be risking.

But that all seemed like a lifetime ago now.

Sighing heavily, Remus turned and pressed his back into the tree. His legs suddenly felt weak, so he sunk towards the ground, sitting on the grass underneath him. It was then that he realized that he heard the sound of rushing water. Just through the trees ahead of him, there was the stream where the werewolves came to drink. Normally, the sound would have calmed and soothed him, but now, he didn't think that those were things he could ever again.

Quite a while later, Remus jumped when he heard a twig snapping somewhere behind him. His heart sped up. He was almost certain that it was Greyback, coming to demand why Remus had run away. Remus swallowed hard and looked around, but when he saw the dirty blond hair, he let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding.

Althea was making her way through the trees towards him, picking her way in between the bushes much more carefully than Remus had on his way. When their eyes met, she paused for a long time, almost like she was afraid to move or to say anything.

"Remus?" she asked quietly, uncertainly. She hesitated again. "Are…are you okay?"

He stared at her for a long time, not quite sure what to say. Of course he wasn't okay, but he still had to be a little bit wary of what he said to her, after all. Finally, he shook his head, looking back in the direction of the stream. He thought of saying something else, of lying and pretending that he was fine, but he thought that he just might have reached his breaking point. If he wasn't honest with someone, he was afraid that it would come out at the most inopportune time. Perhaps in front of Greyback.

"This isn't me, Althea."

More silence followed, and then Remus heard more branches breaking behind him. A moment later, Althea was sitting next to him, but not too close. She seemed a little bit more cautious of him than she had been. "That's what I was going to tell you," she whispered. "Before Talon…" When Remus flinched and closed his eyes at the name, Althea stopped. "He had it coming," she continued after a while. "I told you he wasn't going to make it to the next moon."

"Can we talk about something else?" Remus muttered. He still wasn't quite ready to face the reality that Talon was dead.

"Sorry," Althea said quickly. She sounded a little bit afraid, and Remus hated that. Hated that she would fear him in any way. Did she actually think that he might yell or get physical with her if she said the wrong thing? That was what her tone suggested to him. Of course, the other werewolves wouldn't hesitate to do those things, but Remus never would. At least not to a woman. Remus's father always told him that it took a very a very vile person to hurt a woman.

"What were you going to tell me before?" Remus asked gently, breaking the awkward silence that had fallen.

Althea gave him a nervous smile before she said, "Just…exactly that. That this isn't you." She looked away at some spot in the trees, unable to hold his eyes. "I told you that you're nothing at all like Talon or the others. You don't seem suited to this place at all." When she looked back at him, she asked, "What are you _doing_ here?"

Remus blinked, then hurriedly said, "I don't…I told you. I'm here for the same reason you are. Because I don't _have_ anywhere else to go."

Althea shook her head, her expression making it quite apparent that she didn't believe him. "But you're not like me." He raised an eyebrow at her, but she insisted, "You're not. I could tell before you bit that boy. And afterwards, too. I could tell just now when you couldn't watch Talon…" She cut herself off, but then added, "I could tell from the fact that you don't want to talk about it."

"I don't want to talk about it," Remus snapped, "because it's my fault!" He hadn't been intending to tell her that at all, but it had escaped him somehow.

"It's not," Althea disagreed. "I told you, Talon had it coming…"

"_I_ was the one that started it all!" Remus interrupted. "It was me coming here in the first place that caused Talon to start acting like he did. If not for me, Talon would still be Greyback's second-in-command." He couldn't believe that he was sharing this with her, but now that he started, he was finding it difficult to stop. "I know he was a bastard. I know I shouldn't care. But I do."

"Which was my entire point," Althea whispered. "I don't think anyone here is going to miss Talon…except you." Remus frowned deeply, and she added, "I mean that in a totally nice way, of course. I think it's nice that you seem to care about everyone, even those who aren't worthy of it."

Remus looked away again in the direction of the stream, feeling a little uncomfortable by her words.

They were both quiet for a long time, and then Althea asked, "Remus, we're friends, right?"

Remus glanced at her quickly. "Yeah. Of course."

"Then trust that I'm not going to go running to Greyback if you tell me something he wouldn't like," Althea said. "I mean, we just spied on Greyback for heaven's sake! If I was really all that loyal to him, do you think I'd have even _considered_ doing that?"

"If you were loyal to Greyback," Remus retorted, "I might expect you to say and do the same things in order to get me to trust you."

Althea shrugged. "Fair enough. But I'm not." She scooted a little closer to him. "I like you, Remus, all right?" Remus smiled the tiniest bit at that, and Althea's cheeks turned a bright red. "As a friend, of course." She picked at a strand of her hair and played with it for a moment until her embarrassment passed. "I like you more than anyone else in my life at the moment. And I know that my life consists of a bunch of bloodthirsty werewolves, so that really isn't saying much, but…" She seemed to realize she was rambling, so she ran a hand through her hair in frustration and took a deep breath before beginning again. "You're the first real friend I've had since I was bitten. I'm not about to rat you out to Greyback. It's been a while since I've had a friend, but I remember enough to know that friends don't do that sort of thing to each other."

Althea's words immediately reminded Remus of Sirius. Merlin, he missed the mangy mutt, but he shook his head in an attempt to try and keep his mind on the present conversation. "No, they don't."

"It's obvious you're miserable here," Althea said softly. "More so than I ever was. Not that I'm trying to get rid of you, because I'd miss you, but…you belong here even less than I do."

Remus wasn't entirely sure he agreed with that. After all, Althea wasn't the one strutting around here, suggesting that Greyback eat people. On the other hand, Althea did seem comfortable with turning children, something Remus would never be. If those two things balanced out, Remus really wasn't that different.

"I'm going to ask you again," Althea said. "What on earth are you doing here?"

He stared at her for a long time. "You want the honest answer to that? Because I have absolutely no clue. I am no leader. I _can't_ go around ordering people to do things and punishing them if they don't." A wistful expression passed over his features suddenly, and he chuckled. "Except maybe my students."

"What?"

"I'm a teacher. Or I was before I came here."

"At Hogwarts?"

"Yes."

"What did you teach?"

"Defense Against the Dark Arts. Ironic, isn't it?" Remus asked good naturedly. "That I taught students how to defend themselves against the likes of creatures like us. And then I ended up here, following a werewolf who takes orders from the darkest wizard in the world." His tone had turned much more bitter at the end, and Althea picked upon it.

"So why don't you leave?"

"You mean aside from pissing off Greyback forever?"

Althea giggled. "Yes. That's not something you'd really concern yourself with, is it?"

Remus shook his head. "No. But I can't leave. For a lot of reasons." He looked at her apologetically. "A lot of which I can't explain to you right now."

"Will you someday?"

"I think so, yes." Remus paused before asking, "What about Greyback? Did he seem particularly angry that I didn't stick around?"

Althea leaned back a bit, propping herself up with her hands and looking up at the sky. "I don't think he noticed at all, to be honest. He was a bit…er, distracted."

Remus grimaced. "Yeah, I'm sorry I asked."

Truthfully, Remus was sorry that he had come here at all. The last thing he'd wanted to do was cost anyone their life, even if that someone was Talon. At the same time, that made Remus's resolve to remain there even stronger. He sure as hell wasn't going to let his time here be in vain, and certainly not the events of the last hour. Not to mention, with the prospect of possibly saving some children, Remus was even more determined to stay. He didn't care if he was miserable. He didn't care if he hated it more with each passing second. He was going to try his hardest to save as many children as possible, even if it killed him in the process.

He still wasn't entirely sure that this was worth the price of his soul or his humanity - in fact, he was positive that it wasn't - but if there was even the smallest chance that he could save another child from Greyback, he would risk it.

If he knew that that child was Harry, he would have made that same choice a million times over.

_To be continued..._


	12. Chapter 12: The Trail of Blood

**Love Sees More 3: Greyback's Pack**

Chapter 12 - The Trail of Blood

As much as Remus wished he could hide in the woods forever, he knew he couldn't. He had already taken a risk by running away in the first place. Surely, it wasn't appropriate for Greyback's second-in-command to disappear into the woods when the alpha wolf decided to kill a member of the pack. Especially when Remus had been the one to suggest it.

What if Greyback took it as a sign that he was weak? What if Greyback decided that Remus really wasn't suited to this position, especially if he couldn't even watch those beneath him being punished? After all, it might only be a matter of time before Greyback ordered Remus to do something similar himself. Remus would deal with that when the time came, but if he couldn't even watch such a thing, clearly he wouldn't be able to do it, either.

Remus suspected he might have some fast talking to do once he went back, but he clung to the hope that Greyback would still be too distracted to care. Althea had said that he was too wrapped up in his "meal" to even notice that Remus had gone, so maybe that would hold true.

Remus finally got to his feet, his legs shaky underneath him. He pressed the palm of one hand against a tree and took some deep breaths, hoping to steady himself. He pressed his other hand over his eyes and rubbed them harshly, almost like that would help him to wake up from this hellhole. When he pulled his hand away, he saw Althea not far from him, still sitting crossed-legged on the ground. She was looking up at him curiously.

"I should get back," Remus sighed. "Greyback's probably wondering where I am."

Althea opened her mouth like she was about to say something, but then thought better of it. She closed her mouth and simply nodded. Remus wasn't sure if he was imagining it or not, but he thought he caught the slightest trace of disappointment on her face, almost like she had been expecting him to leave the pack behind instead. Truth be told, Remus couldn't blame her in the least if that was what she was feeling; he wasn't feeling very proud himself at the moment, either.

He felt like he was betraying everything he had ever promised himself, sacrificing everything he had ever held important. Except for his loyalty to Dumbledore, of course, and he wished he didn't feel so bitter about that. After all, Dumbledore had given him every opportunity to say no, and he hadn't.

Once again, Remus thought back to his last conversation with Sirius, when his best friend had accused him of letting Dumbledore's trust in him cloud his judgment. After all, not very many people had ever trusted Remus, so when someone did, a tiny part of him wanted to go out of his way to prove that that trust wasn't misplaced. If that meant putting himself into some rather insane situations, then so be it. Remus had known then that Sirius had a point, and he knew it now.

Remus shook his head and tried to push those thoughts from his mind. It wouldn't do him any good to go over and over his reasons for still being here, or to try and analyze the ones responsible for him being here at all.

Remus hesitated for a very long time, giving Althea a pleading look. He desperately wished that she would say something. Anything to delay his return to the compound and Greyback. Perhaps even something to change his mind, to try and talk him out of staying there. But if that was a decision he was so determined to avoid, what made him think that anything Althea could say would change his mind? Sirius had always accused him of being as stubborn as a mule, and here he was, proving exactly that.

Leaving Althea alone and feeling a bit disappointed about it, Remus slowly made his way back towards the compound. He kept going over and over Greyback's possible reactions to him running off, and working out all of the possible answers he could give. None of them seemed very convincing to his own mind, let alone to Greyback, so then Remus resorted to silently praying that Greyback would still be too caught up in "other things" to care.

Remus returned to the spot where he had last seen Greyback and Talon, just around the rear of the cave. At first he didn't see anything out of the ordinary, but then when he came around the last few clumps of bushes that gave way to the clearing, it came into view. Talon's remains.

There wasn't much left at all of the once proud werewolf. Pools of blood spread across the forest floor, turning the bright green into a crimson color. More blood had been splattered across the wall of the cave and along some of the nearby tree trunks. Only the sad remnants of Talon's tattered clothes, torn to shreds and littered across the area, gave any sign that there had ever been a person there at all. Indeed, when Greyback decided to eat something, he didn't leave anything behind; he clearly didn't believe in wasting "food".

Unable to stare at the scene any longer, Remus turned away, but that proved to be a mistake. On the other side of the clearing sat one of Talon's shoes, somehow perfectly intact and upright on the grass, unlike the rest of his clothes. Just peeking out of the opening in the shoe, Remus could just make out something - the biggest piece of Talon that Greyback had probably left behind.

Remus knew without a doubt that he would never forget that image. Knew that he would lie awake at night for years to come and see the contents of that shoe, like someone had indelibly pasted a picture of it in his brain. His eyes burned at the thought, and he felt nothing but revulsion at himself for allowing such a thing to happen in his presence. For allowing a man, however horrible, to be killed, all for the purposes of keeping up with a silly charade. For pretending like he even remotely belonged here when that couldn't be further from the truth.

Perhaps that was the very first time that Remus realized what a fool he'd been for agreeing to come here at all. For thinking that he could remain here for a little while and return home like nothing had happened. This entire experience was changing him forever, he couldn't deny that any longer, and he could never go back to the person he'd been before. He really hated the thought of that - almost like there would be a piece of his place with him for the rest of his life.

In his entire time there, Remus had never wanted to go home as badly as he did right then. Since he'd been there, a strengthening ache had slowly developed somewhere inside him, one that Remus now knew was homesickness. He'd felt the very same thing twenty-five years before when he'd started Hogwarts, and that ache had lasted until he knew that he was sharing his dorm with three boys that had become his best friends.

Only one of those friends remained, and Remus missed that mangy mutt more than he could ever possibly put into words. Remus had just seen him - had it only been that morning? So much had happened since then, it already felt like it had been ages, and Remus was desperately longing for another visit. He knew, however, that that was completely out of the question. Remus had gotten very lucky so far, and he couldn't constantly keep running home every time he felt like it. Sooner or later, it would become a huge red flag for Greyback, which Remus couldn't risk.

Remus briefly wondered where Greyback had gotten to, but another look around the area answered that. A trail of blood led into woods straight ahead from where Remus was standing, painting the way directly to the alpha wolf. Putting it off wouldn't make it any easier, so Remus steeled himself and quickly crossed the clearing. He followed the bloody trail, trying to tell himself that it wasn't really blood, but perhaps just some crimson paint that someone had spilled.

Remus was again reminded of how much hated the color red.

A small distance into the woods, Greyback sat on the ground with his back against a tree. He had one hand over his stomach like he had just eaten a very large, very tasty meal. He was using the long and yellowed nails of his other hand to pick at his teeth, like he always had a habit of doing after eating. Blood was smeared all over his hands, mouth, and down the front of his clothes. True to what Althea had said, Greyback didn't seem the least bit concerned with where Remus was, or anyone else in the world for that matter. In fact, the alpha wolf seemed positively content.

Remus's stomach churned uncomfortably at the sight, but he tried his hardest to push the sensation away. It didn't seem like Greyback had spotted him yet, but it wouldn't do for Remus to be running off into the woods again. Nor would it be appropriate for Remus to be physically sick at what Greyback deemed only natural for them.

A moment later, Greyback sniffed at the air and immediately turned to look at Remus. It was very off-putting to say the least, to know that Greyback could tell that someone was nearby simply from the smell. Greyback still didn't seem to care what Remus was doing, which was a very good thing. He continued to pick at his teeth leisurely, watching Remus like he was some sort of fascinating creature to be studied. It made Remus shiver to be regarded in such a way.

"Remus," Greyback finally said around a yawn. He already seemed bored of the conversation. "Where did you run off to?"

Remus hoped against hope that that was simply a figure of speech, and that Greyback hadn't actually seen him run off. "Nowhere," Remus said nonchalantly. "I just thought you'd want to enjoy your meal in peace." Remus suppressed the frown that threatened to spread across his face at the way he had just described the last moments of Talon's life.

Greyback licked his lips at the words, looking impossibly hungry for more. "You could have helped yourself, you know. I like to share. Sometimes."

Remus had no idea how to respond to that, so he didn't say anything, trying to act like he didn't want to be sick.

Greyback got to his feet then, stretching and yawning some more. After such a big meal, Remus imagined he could probably do with a nap. "Oh, that's right," Greyback said tiredly. "You don't eat meat, do you?"

"I…not that fresh." Remus really didn't like this conversation. Given, he had been expecting far worse, but this wasn't exactly welcome, either.

"You're used to cooked food, I know." He approached Remus, still licking his lips, seeming to savor every last drop of the blood that remained behind. "I believe I've told you before that I don't want this place to be like a prison. That's exactly what those _humans_ tried to make this place into at one time - locking us into tiny little cells, and starving us so that we were forced to eat whatever the hell they bothered to give us if we wanted to survive. If I tried to dictate what you could and could not eat, I wouldn't be much better than they are, now would I?"

Remus thought it was rather ironic for Greyback to be talking about being better than anyone. Greyback probably didn't even realize that he'd picked up a lot of his behaviors from those who ran the colonies, and as a result, he was more like them than he'd ever admit. Not to mention, those who ran werewolf colonies weren't exactly upstanding citizens, but at least they didn't eat people.

"If you want to eat berries and nuts for now," Greyback went on without waiting for a response, "help yourself. I understand that you're not comfortable yet with the thought of preying on people or your fellow werewolves. You lived among those _humans_ for so long…you've allowed them to tame you. They've forced you into a mold, forced you to eat _their_ food. It's only what you're used to, so I can't blame you for that."

Greyback looked him up and down in that penetrating way that made Remus feel like his entire soul was being exposed. He reached up a hand and ran one blood-encrusted fingernail under Remus's chin. "Give it some time," Greyback purred. "I never would have made you my beta wolf unless I thought you were absolutely capable of filling that role. I'm not the least bit disappointed in anything you've done thus far, but I know it will take some time until you let go of some of those human habits. Until you truly embrace your wolf. But it will happen. Of that I'm sure."

Remus knew that this whole experience was changing him. He'd finally admitted it to himself that he'd never be the same person he'd been before, but there was one thing he knew. He would never, ever be anything even remotely close to Greyback, and he'd never let his wolf take him over completely. Of that _he_ was sure.

Greyback had turned away from Remus and was starting to make his way through the forest. Remus hesitated for a moment, not sure if he was meant to follow or not. In the end, it didn't seem like their conversation was the least bit over. Besides, wasn't that a second-in-command's job, to follow his superior around? If he was expected to follow and he didn't, that very well might upset Greyback, so Remus decided that he couldn't go wrong with sticking to his alpha. He quickly made his way through the brush, rushing to keep up.

Greyback headed back towards the center of the compound where his shack was located. He stopped along the way, leaning against a tree and watching a small group of the epsilons (Althea included) that had gathered some distance away. They only looked to be chatting casually, but Greyback seemed very interested in them nonetheless.

Remus came up behind Greyback. The epsilons were a bit too far away for Remus to hear anything they were saying, but he wondered if Greyback could. His senses were obviously sharper than Remus's could ever be, and he sensed things that no one else could.

After a while, Greyback looked back over his shoulder at Remus. "Just checking," he explained. "Talon got some of them to be right little upstarts recently, but I think I've put a stop to that. They seem very concerned with this recent turn of events, and none of them sound very keen on causing anymore problems." Greyback grinned. "They know not to question me anymore, because it will only land them in hot water."

Greyback kept on walking back towards the center of the compound, leaving Remus to marvel at the fact that Greyback had heard the other werewolves so clearly from this distance. Or maybe he hadn't heard them at all. Perhaps Greyback sensed things from their body language or even their smell. Either way, it made Remus wonder if he was truly fooling Greyback as much as he thought he was.

Remus knew he should be following Greyback, but he stood rooted to his spot a little bit longer, watching the group of epsilons. Just then, Althea looked up and their eyes connected for a long time. As long as Remus dared, because it was now clear that Greyback expected him to come along. Remus finally broke their gaze, and once again rushed to catch up with the alpha wolf.

When Remus was close enough, Greyback began talking again. "Speaking of the epsilons, why do you hang around with that one blonde so much? What's her name?"

"Althea," Remus said. He was sure that Greyback knew very well what her name was. After all, he had called her by name just that morning, but he was apparently trying to play her off as insignificant and forgettable. "And I don't hang around with her. She follows me around."

"Not following you now, is she?" Greyback asked. "I wonder if you now being my beta wolf scares her." He stopped walking and turned around to face Remus again. "She's beneath you, Remus. So far beneath you it's not even funny."

Remus was a bit caught off guard with this new line of questioning. Did Greyback expect him to stop associating with the epsilons, except when necessary? Remus certainly didn't want to do that. After all, that would just be another step closer to being like Greyback - cutting off contact with those who were inferior.

"I don't care if you do associate with her," Greyback said, answering Remus's unspoken questions. "We've been over this," he said a bit tiredly. "I don't make rules like that. You're more than free to talk to whichever pack members you see fit. When will you realize that?"

It was possibly the first time Greyback had ever sounded the least bit annoyed with Remus, so he quickly bowed his head. "I'm sorry, sir. I wasn't questioning you. I'm just not used to this." Remus was abhorred at what he was about to say, but he forced himself to go on before he could lose his nerve. "Those _humans_ had so many rules for how I was supposed to behave. It surprises me that I'm free to do whatever I wish here. Within reason."

"Indeed," Greyback hummed. "I think those _humans_ would be downright shocked that I'm not as bad as they make me out to be." He smiled to himself like he had made a joke, then turned his head to look back towards the epsilons. "I just brought it up, because you're so different from Talon. Once he made it up a couple of ranks, anyone beneath him was automatically off limits, unless he needed to discipline them." When he looked at Remus again, he asked, "But you don't mind talking to anyone, do you?"

"No," Remus replied truthfully. "I was a zeta not long ago, and Althea talked to me then. Why should she no longer be fit company just because I've moved up a few ranks?"

"Far more than a few, Remus," Greyback reminded him around a grin. "It may surprise you, but that gives me confidence in you. Talon's problem was that he let his seniority go to his head. He got it in his mind that he could do no wrong, so he started acting out in every way possible. As I've said, you're obviously very different, so I don't expect to have that problem with you."

"I hope not, sir. I don't want to disappoint you." Remus looked towards the epsilons as well, hoping that Greyback didn't catch the disgust that he was sure was present on his face at telling such lies. He saw Althea again, and the idea came to him so quickly, it was almost overwhelming. Remus knew that Althea was feeling a little bit leery of him, especially since the latest events with Talon. Remus was sure she couldn't care less whether she was any higher in the pack or not, but if Remus could get her a promotion, something she hadn't been able to achieve on her own, perhaps it would help persuade her to trust him a little more. He only hoped he wouldn't be overstepping his bounds.

"Sir?" Remus asked tentatively. "Permission to speak freely?"

"Knock yourself out. You're well past the point of having to censor yourself around me."

"Althea's been here a long time," Remus explained. "Two years, she told me, and she's still an epsilon."

"The other epsilons have been here even longer than that," Greyback replied. "I don't promote them just for being here and quietly following the rules. For that, they get to stay. Nothing more. I promote them when they do something that makes them stand out, something that proves their undying loyalty to me." He tilted his head towards Remus. "Such as you. I promoted you, because you never fail to stand and face me, even when you are terrified that you've done something wrong. That's something not a single one of the other werewolves here can claim. Just you, and I thought you should be rewarded for it."

Remus ducked his head again in a sign of submission, which Greyback usually liked to see after he gave a compliment. "Well…Althea did. To me, at least." He raised his gaze then, looking Greyback straight in the eye. "When I first came here…she took me under her wing. Explained some of the things that I wasn't sure about. She helped me adjust, I guess, faster than I would have done otherwise."

"Is that so?" Greyback asked, sounding a bit skeptical. He crossed his arms over his chest, looking down his nose at Remus. "What are you saying? That I should promote her?"

Remus wondered if he really was treading on thin ice. It was difficult to read Greyback, because his moods seemed to shift so quickly sometimes. "No. It's not my place to tell you what to do, sir. I just thought I'd let you know that she helped me."

Greyback seemed to consider this, stepping closer to Remus until they were mere inches apart. "Do you think she had any part at all in getting you where you are right now?"

Remus thought he knew exactly what had gotten him into his position as Greyback's second-in-command. It was Remus's submissive yet brave nature that Greyback liked so much, and that would be true with or without Althea in the picture. Greyback, however, didn't need to know that. "I don't know," Remus lied, shrugging. "I suppose she could have."

Silence fell for a while, during which Greyback seemed to be going over his options very carefully. He even looked Remus over even more closely than before and spent some sniffing the air, as if those things would tell him whether or not Remus was lying. Greyback did have keen senses, but the more time that went on, the more Remus became convinced that they were nothing more than - sharp senses. He liked to pretend that he could smell things like lies and deceit on people, but surely he would have killed Remus by now if that were the case. Remus was positive by now that it was just one of the things that Greyback used to make himself appear even more threatening than he already did.

"If she was the least bit responsible for giving me such a promising beta, perhaps she does deserve a promotion," Greyback replied quietly. "I'll think about it."

Suddenly, Greyback turned on his heel again, and Remus finally realized that they were, in fact, heading back in the directions of Greyback's shack. Remus hurried to catch up again, swallowing hard. That only meant that Greyback wanted to discuss something with him that no one else would overhear. He followed the hulking wolf through the underbrush, wondering what on earth Greyback could possibly want to talk about now.

When they returned to the shack, Remus ascended the small wooden steps after Greyback, closing the door behind him. It was getting on towards dinner, and the sun had already started to set, leaving the interior of the shack rather dim. Just the way Greyback liked it.

If Remus wasn't imagining things, he thought he could make out the faintest smirk on Greyback's face. He looked oddly amused with something, and that made Remus distinctly uneasy. He shifted on his feet.

"You please me, Remus," Greyback finally said. "I didn't order you to follow me, yet here you are."

"Er…I didn't think our conversation was over," Remus responded. "If you didn't want me around, I figured you'd tell me to get lost."

Greyback's ugly, toothy grin was back, his sharp and yellowed fangs gleaming in the darkness. "Indeed." He laughed, a sound that came out more like a growl than anything. "Again I have to say how different from Talon you are. If I had left him in the woods, he couldn't be bothered to follow me. Not unless I ordered him to, in which case, he didn't disobey. Not back then. But sometimes I had to remind him - give him orders for things that should have been common sense already." Greyback crossed the shack, growing closer to Remus until they were a minute distance apart. When Greyback spoke again, his voice was raised. "I had to remind him of his job here! That as my second-in-command, his priority was to serve me! Not himself. He forgot that sometimes. But not you. You'll never forget that, will you?"

Remus had been a little taken aback by Greyback's shouting. For a precarious moment there, Remus had almost begun to think that Greyback was angry at him for some reason, but apparently it was just some long held in anger for Talon. Then again, Remus wished that Greyback would stop comparing him to Talon already. It only served to make Remus feel worse, reminding him of what he had allowed to happen to the previous beta. Remus looked Greyback straight in the eye and shook his head. "No, sir."

"No," Greyback repeated. "I know you won't. You're a good pup."

He turned away again, for which Remus was thankful for, because this time, he failed to suppress the shiver that ran through him. He hated being praised in such a way by Greyback. In fact, it almost made Remus want to shout about how he'd never truly be loyal to Greyback.

Greyback stalked to the small wooden table near the back of the shack. He leaned against it, which always made Remus think that the small rickety structure would give out under the weight of the stocky werewolf, but it never did.

"I'm sure you recognized the visitor I had today," Greyback said after a while.

Remus considered denying this, but then he reminded himself that he should be telling as few lies as possible. He had no doubt that they would catch up to him someday, so the fewer he told, the better. Remus nodded once. "Amycus Carrow. A Death Eater."

"Yes." Greyback didn't say anything further right away, but he seemed to be watching Remus carefully, trying to gauge his feelings. After a while, he went on. "How would you feel about accompanying me on…a _job_ with the rest of the Death Eaters?" Before Remus could even think about his response, Greyback added, "I know you've only just denounced your loyalty to Dumbledore, but I think this might be a good way for you to announce your switch to everyone. To show them all - and me - who are you really are loyal to now."

Of course Remus wouldn't say no, but he didn't want to seem too eager, so he pretended to mull over his decision for a while. Even though the prospect of going anywhere with Greyback and the rest of the Death Eaters scared him senseless, Remus knew that he might inevitably have the chance to save someone from a horrible fate. He couldn't pass that up. That was even a part of the reason he was here at all - to do whatever possible to help their side. "I'm honored, sir," Remus said quietly, lying through his teeth, "that you think I'm ready for such a responsibility."

"I never would have made you my second-in-command if I thought otherwise," Greyback replied. "So that's a yes?"

"Of course, sir," Remus firmly. "Whatever you wish of me."

"Wonderful," Greyback hummed. "After this, all those wolves will realize once and for all that I made the right decision in making you my beta. You won't have them whispering behind your back anymore." Greyback started to pick at some of the dried blood on his fingernails. "Although I'm sure the rest of the wizarding world will be whispering. They'll be so distraught that they trusted you for so long. You won't mind that, will you?"

"No, sir," Remus bit out, although Greyback's words were making him more uncomfortable by the minute. "In fact, I'd like very much to see the expression on Dumbledore's face when he realizes where my loyalties now lie."

"Maybe not Dumbledore," Greyback said conversationally, "but we'll definitely see the expression on _someone's_ face." He laughed again, that sound that was beginning to grate on Remus's nerves. "Yes, it should be good fun." Greyback pushed away from the table and approached Remus once more. "I'm not quite sure when that will be yet, but soon. And when the time does come…make me proud, Remus."

"I plan to, sir."

"I know you will. I can't wait." Greyback gave him one last gruesome grin before turning on his heel and heading for the door, leaving Remus alone in the ever-darkening shack.

He closed his eyes and let out a shuddering breath he didn't know he had been holding, rubbing a shaking hand over his face. It was getting ever harder to keep up with this charade, to pretend that he was unfailingly loyal to Greyback when that couldn't be further from the truth. Sometimes, Remus barely stopped the urge to scream about how he was loyal to Dumbledore, that he would always be loyal to Dumbledore, and that Greyback was a giant fool for ever thinking otherwise. He obviously didn't know Remus as well as he thought he did.

Or perhaps he did, because sometimes Remus got the distinct feeling that Greyback knew exactly what was going on. That he was playing Remus just as much as Remus thought he was playing Greyback. Maybe it was just in Greyback's demeanor, the way he always tried to act like a know-it-all. But if that was the case, why did Remus feel like he was being tested all over again?

To be continued…


	13. Chapter 13: The End Is Near

**Love Sees More 3: Greyback's Pack**

Chapter 13 - The End Is Near

Remus had taken to sleeping in the cave, which was reserved for the epsilons. However, Greyback had told him that he was allowed to sleep anywhere he wished, and he was taking full advantage of that. Remus figured that if he was going to try to sway as many of the werewolves over to Dumbledore's side as possible, his best bet was with the lowest ranking ones. He reasoned that they wouldn't be as close or as loyal to Greyback as some of the others, and they'd have the least to lose if they ever did decide to abandon the pack.

Remus thought that by sharing their sleeping arrangements, they'd realize that he didn't think himself any better than the rest of them, and that he'd begin to gain their trust. His attempts were proving to be futile, however; with the exception of Althea, they still all seemed very distrustful of him. Since Remus held such a high place in the pack, most of the others were leery of even talking to him, thinking that he would go running to Greyback with anything they said that was even remotely out of order.

Moreover, many viewed what had happened to Talon as a betrayal of the pack on Remus's part. Talon was a bastard, yes, and everyone had hated him, but the rest of the werewolves very much had a pack mentality. Many of them were there for the very same reason - because they had nowhere else to go. They were all in this together, and there was safety in numbers. They may not always get along or agree with each other, but this was their family (or at least the closest thing to a family they had). They did not approve of causing problems for each other where Greyback was concerned.

They knew Talon was a troublemaker, and that he hadn't been entirely innocent in the whole situation, but as far as they were concerned, Remus was the new one. Before he had come into their pack, they had all been living at least somewhat peacefully among each other. It was only when Remus had joined that the problems with Talon had started at all, which didn't help Remus's position any. Some of the werewolves were even beginning to suspect that Remus had come to them for the sole purpose of destroying the pack. Remus had only let things with Talon turn out like they had because he was trying to get on Greyback's good side; he never imagined that he'd be sabotaging his efforts with the rest of the pack in the process.

On the other hand, at least no one was causing anymore problems for Remus. After what had happened to Talon, none of the other werewolves wanted to suffer a similar fate, so they were keeping quiet about their reservations for the most part. Remus sometimes caught them whispering about him among themselves, but none of them (as far as he knew) were going to Greyback with their concerns. He was pretty sure that Greyback wouldn't have any of it anyway, and that he certainly would have heard about it if they had.

Remus knew that Greyback would want him to take action against them for their blatant disrespect - whispering about their second-in-command was certainly not allowed. Remus was also well aware that Greyback would want to hear about, or else for Remus to discipline the werewolves himself if he saw fit. But he didn't. If Remus had any hope of swaying them over to Dumbledore's side at all, it wouldn't do to become physical with them, or to tattle on them to Greyback. Let them see exactly what kind of person Remus was when he didn't cause them any problems over their insubordination; maybe they'd start to trust him then. Remus only hoped that Greyback wouldn't ever catch them at it, because he was terrified of another Talon situation erupting, of being forced into possibly disciplining any of them. But so far nothing more had happened; they were obviously all being extra cautious, at least when Greyback was around.

Remus even began to suspect that many of the other werewolves were jealous of him. After all, he was the newest one there, and he already outranked all of them except for Greyback himself. The others had all been there for years, many of them still in the second to lowest rank. Remus imagined that a lot of them were pretty frustrated with him, that he just seemed to waltz in and charm Greyback so easily.

Remus would be lying if he said that very fact didn't scare him. He oftentimes wondered if he was fooling Greyback at all. The alpha wolf seemed to pride himself on being able to tell when people were being untruthful with him. Greyback was a bit full of himself, but sometimes it seemed like he knew exactly what Remus was up to. It occurred to Remus that he might very well be the one that was being deceived, and that Greyback was only letting this continue to punish Remus for trying to put one over on him. Then again, Greyback was not a patient werewolf. At all. Many times, he told Remus that he wouldn't waste any time in ripping Remus's throat out if he found out he was being deceitful. Not that the thought of being mauled by Greyback made him feel any better, but he didn't like the feeling that Greyback might be playing a game of cat and mouse with him either.

If nothing else, Remus at least felt like he was getting a little bit closer to Althea. They spent most days talking, usually about their lives before they had joined the pack. Remus still hadn't told her what he was really doing there, but he kept planting ideas in her head that there was a better place - a better life - than the one they were currently living in. That she didn't have to settle for this godforsaken place, because there were other options if she wanted them badly enough.

Remus had long since lost track of the days, but it was going on almost two full months since he had been there, because the moon was getting rather large and looming in the sky again. Many times, he felt like using a rock to carve marks into the wall of the cave in order to keep track of the days, but he had quickly decided against it. That was something that people in prisons did, and the last thing he wanted was to do more things to remind himself that that was exactly what this place was. He abhorred the moon even more for doing so.

He almost couldn't believe it, that he had been living a lie for that long. That it had been so long since he had lived like an actual human being and since he had even seen home. The last time he had been to number twelve, Grimmauld Place was right after the last full moon. He'd gone there out of desperation, because he had felt so close to breaking down after the task that Greyback had asked him to perform in order to prove his loyalty. He was dying to go back again, to see his best friend once more, but he didn't want to risk it. Remus had been extremely lucky, and he thought Greyback had been very forgiving of his missteps so far. Remus didn't want to push his luck any more than he already had.

Remus would have to return home before the next full moon in order to get the Wolfsbane potion. Remus sure as hell wasn't going to go through a transformation with the pack without it, not when they made it a point to position themselves near populated areas. Remus would never forgive himself if he ended up biting someone as a result, but the thought of going home again was almost too much to bear. Oh, he wanted nothing more than to return home _forever_, but just going there for a few hours only made this experience all the more difficult for him. Every time he set foot in his home, it just made it that much harder to return to the compound, to continue on with the farce his life had become. In fact, home almost felt like a carrot hanging in front of a turtle, the one that made the turtle keep going out of hunger, but the one that the animal would never really get, the one that would remain perpetually out of his reach.

Remus would go to get the Wolfsbane the night before the full moon and no sooner. Greyback did tell him that he was allowed to leave the compound if he wanted, just as long as he was back in time for all before-meal meetings, but Remus wanted to put as much time in between his visits as possible. He didn't want to make it too obvious what he was up to, and he feared that by leaving the compound regularly, he might arouse even more suspicion from the other werewolves.

He was also afraid that if he went home again, he'd be tempted to stay there and forget this entire plan. If he went on the night before the full moon in order to get the Wolfsbane, he felt like that would a staunch reminder that his time with the werewolves wasn't over yet. That it wouldn't be over until he did _something_ - swayed _someone_ over to their side or learned some epic secret that would help them in the war.

"It's almost lunchtime," said Althea, approaching him and pulling Remus from his thoughts.

He was in what had become their customary position where they liked to sit and talk - outside of the cave, leaning up against the side wall. Giving her a half-hearted smile, he adjusted his legs and pressed his back into the wall of the cave, wriggling around. Nearly two months of sleeping on shoddy beds and the ground was beginning to catch up with him. He longed even more for his bed at home, for the mattress, his pillows, and the blankets, all worn and soft with age.

"Wonderful," Remus muttered. He had come to hate mealtimes with the pack. Trying to sustain himself on whatever nuts and berries he could find while the others made it a point to hunt live animals only served to alienate Remus from the others even more. Greyback told him that he could eat whatever he pleased, but the others were already suspicious of him, and this didn't help matters any. But Remus would never lower himself to catching and killing anything, not even in the interest of proving his loyalty. He wouldn't.

When Althea reached the cave, she sat down next to Remus, leaning back against the stone wall as well. "What are you thinking about?" she asked.

"About my home," Remus answered almost before he could even think about it. He turned his face away from her and added quietly, "Before I came here."

"You miss it." Althea's tone was knowing.

Remus shook his head. "There's not really anything to miss," he lied, even though he suspected that he was already fighting a losing battle. He and Althea never came right out and said things a lot of the time; they danced around topics and made insinuations, but it always seemed like the other one knew exactly what it was they meant.

"That's what you say, but…I know you do." She started playing with a strand of her hair, which she had a habit of doing when she didn't want to look at him. "It's in the way you lie awake at night, staring at the ceiling of the cave so intently, it's like you're reading it. Like there are words written there that only you can see."

Remus turned towards her again and raised an eyebrow. "You watch me sleep?"

Althea shrugged, and Remus thought he could see a pinkish color growing in her face. "You're not sleeping anyway."

"Not much, no," Remus sighed. "But how do you know I'm thinking about home?" His eyes darted around the area, and he lowered his voice before leaning in closer to her and going on. "I could be thinking up ways to try and get Greyback to bathe, for instance."

Althea snorted loudly, pressing a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing out loud. "And he does need one. Badly. But that's not what you're thinking about."

"Althea…"

"You told me once that this isn't you," she interrupted. "That this place isn't you, how you're acting isn't you. Sometimes I think that a part of you is still at home."

Remus wanted to deny it; she was coming awfully close to figuring him out and that terrified him, but what could he say? It was the complete and absolute truth - a part of him _was_ still at home. It was where he belonged, the only place on earth where he felt totally accepted. Of course a part of him would always be there. Not to mention, his best friend was there. Remus almost felt like they were two halves of the same whole - Remus the calm and sensible part, Sirius the wild and crazy part. They complimented each other perfectly. People might suspect that they would drive each other to the nuthouse after a while, and sometimes they did; most of the time, however, they seemed to fit together like two puzzle pieces - one not making sense without the other.

"You're not here for the same reasons the rest of us are," Althea said on. "I think you _do_ have a place to go, and that you're _not_ here as a last resort."

Remus felt like he was on the verge of spilling his guts. Althea kept prodding, and Remus could only keep everything inside for so long. "Althea," he repeated, "I told you that there are things going on that you can't understand and that I can't explain to you. Not yet." He pressed his head back into the wall of the cave, looking up at the sky, perhaps for answers. "Or maybe I can. I don't know."

Althea was quiet for a long time, but then she said, "I suppose I can understand that. You don't trust me yet, and why would you? I'm just a werewolf in Greyback's pack. None of us are very trustworthy."

At that moment, many of the werewolves started emerging from the woods and heading to the mess hall for the customary before-meal meeting. Suddenly, Remus didn't hate said meetings so much, because he was more than ready for his conversation with Althea to be over.

"We're going to be late," he said, getting quickly to his feet. He didn't wait for her to follow him, not like he usually did, but made his way to the mess hall among the throng of werewolves.

Once again, Greyback was the last one to arrive. He took a moment to look around and make sure everyone was accounted for as usual. When he had taken note of everyone, he frowned deeply, then looked around the room again, slower this time, counting more carefully. When he finished the second time, Greyback stood there, looking very puzzled, but Remus didn't understand why. No one was missing that he could he see. Perhaps Greyback was going senile.

Suddenly, Greyback threw his head back and laughed. "It's funny. Sometimes I keep thinking that Talon should be here, but he's not. Obviously." He licked his lips as if he could still taste the former second-in-command on them.

Remus closed his eyes against the stark reminder of what had happened to Talon. Of what he had allowed to happen to Talon. Of just how much he disrupted this entire pack by thinking that he could be a part of it.

"No matter," Greyback hummed cheerily. He clasped his hands behind his back and started to walk back and forth in the middle of the group. He loved to do that when he spoke to them. Remus suspected it made him feel important. "I have an announcement today," Greyback said. "As I'm sure most of you are aware, I've been quite pleased with my new second-in-command. Remus has been doing a wonderful job since being promoted to his new rank three weeks ago. I've had absolutely no reservations, then or now, with my decision. I suspect that might come as a shock to some of you." He paused in his steps and swept a glare across the group. "I'm well aware that some of you haven't been happy with his appointment, but I see you've all learned to keep your opinions to yourselves. And you'll continue to do so, because that's not for any of you to decide. Just me, but Remus is proving to be quite a promising beta wolf. Better than, I think, any of you could have done. Deal with it."

Remus was even more sure than ever that Greyback just liked to hear himself talk. He often made similar speeches to the pack, repeating things that they already knew very well. None of the other werewolves had been that out of line lately, so Remus really didn't think that Greyback needed to go over these things as often as he did, but apparently Greyback enjoyed it. Remus, on the other hand, hated it. It only served to put him on a pedestal, to make him even more separate from the group than he already was.

After pausing for effect, Greyback continued, "However, it has come to my attention that Remus had some help in achieving his current position. Anyone that had a part in giving me such loyal second-in-command certainly deserves to be rewarded." He took a few steps towards one of the corners. "Jameson," he said, raising a finger and motioning for her to come forward.

Althea always stood near one of the corners during meetings, and she looked absolutely put on the spot by being summoned forward. Her eyes went wide, and she reminded Remus of a deer caught in a pair of headlights. She stared at Remus for a moment, and he didn't like her expression. Not one bit. It was somewhere in between anger and accusing, and either way, Remus wondered if he had made a grave mistake in trying to get her a promotion.

Directing her eyes to floor, Althea made her way through the group until she was standing just in front of Greyback. He stared down at her, and it only now occurred to Remus how much smaller she was than him. Greyback simply towered over her, and if he ever had a reason to attack her, she wouldn't stand much of a chance. No wonder she didn't like to make a spectacle of herself.

"Jameson," Greyback drawled, seeming to savor the fact that she looked terrified. "You helped Remus when he first came here, did you not? Explained to him a little about the pack and made it a little easer for him to adjust. Is that not right?"

Althea threw her eyes towards Remus again for a moment, then back down at the floor. "Yes, sir. I suppose I did."

Greyback reached out, placing one finger underneath her chin and forcing her to look up at him. He grinned when their eyes met, that ugly toothy grin that never failed to send a shiver down Remus's spine.

"Look at me when I talk to you," Greyback softly. "It is a sign of respect after all." He released her chin, and she kept her eyes pinned on his, so Greyback seemed quite satisfied with that. "As I said, since you had a hand in giving me a stronger beta than I ever imagined, you certainly deserve to be rewarded for that. I'm moving you up a rank to delta. Congratulations."

Althea's eyes went wide again, almost as if she didn't believe it. Judging by her body language, it had almost looked like she was bracing herself to be punished, certainly not rewarded. Now that Remus thought about it, that was how most of the other werewolves looked at that moment - that they didn't believe this recent turn of events at all. None of them moved a muscle or made a sound, of course; none of them fancied angering Greyback at all.

Althea stumbled over her words before she was finally able to get out, "Thank you, sir. I'm honored." Her tone was one of disbelief, but she still she kept her eyes on Greyback, which seemed to please him even more.

"As you should be," Greyback said. He stepped away from her, turning to face the rest of the werewolves. "I trust you can all adjust to this change, and I won't have any problems from any of you over it, hm?" When a murmur of assent went through the group, Greyback said, "Very good."

He started pacing back and forth again, running one of his long yellowed fingernails over his chin like he was trying to remember something. "Oh, yes."

He turned to Bruno Canin, a wolf with straw-colored hair. He held the position of gamma in the pack, just one rank below Remus. Before Remus had been promoted to beta wolf, everyone had seemed pretty certain that Canin would have been the one to replace Talon. He had often followed Talon around, copying his every move and had seemed pretty favorable with Greyback. Until Remus had arrived, that was. Now, Greyback seemed to have a different view of all the werewolves, and he no longer seemed to like Canin as much as he once had. In fact, Greyback told Remus that Canin was nothing more than a sick little pup who wasn't capable of thinking for himself.

It was rather disconcerting just how much of an effect Remus was having on them all.

"Canin," Greyback said, "I would like you to come to my shack after lunch. I have something to discuss with you."

"Yes, sir," Canin replied, sounding slightly confused.

Remus, on the other hand, was very confused. It wasn't often that Greyback called anyone from the pack into his shack to discuss things. Remus was the one who had been in there the most recently, but only because he was Greyback's second-in-command. Remus didn't think anyone else from the pack had been in there since Talon had held that position.

"That's all for today," Greyback said. He almost looked he was going to say more, but then he thought better of it. He promptly turned on his heel and headed out of the shack.

The other werewolves began to follow, some of them whispering in hushed tones about Althea's promotion. A tiny part of Remus wondered if Greyback was still close enough to hear them, in which case, they were skating on thin ice. And so was Remus if he didn't say something.

"Excuse me," Remus barked, causing them all to stop and stare at him. It wasn't often that Remus raised his voice to them, but he thought this time was necessary. "Is there a problem?"

Many of them shook their heads rapidly, and a few of them murmured, "No, sir."

"Then I suggest that you all _quietly_ get to lunch," Remus said firmly. "No one asked for your opinions on the matter."

They all ducked their heads, hastening their exit from the shack, until Remus was left alone with only Althea. Remus shut his eyes again, leaning back into the wall of the mess hall. Oh, how he hated having to discipline any of them. He was not cut out for any of this at all, and it made him even more uncomfortable than he already was. It felt like every time he raised his voice, any time he corrected them, it was just making the target on his back even larger.

"What was that?" Althea hissed when she was sure they were alone. She stalked over to him, her hands on her hips. "I don't need you to do me any favors, thank you very much. I'm quite capable of taking care of myself in case you hadn't noticed, and I was doing just fine before you arrived."

This was definitely not turning out the way that Remus had hoped. He opened and closed his mouth several times, not sure how he should attempt to placate her. "Althea, I didn't…" He took a deep breath, rethinking his strategy. "All I said to Greyback was the truth. That you helped me when I first arrived here. That's all. He made assumptions like he always does, which I find rather funny, considering he always says that assuming makes an arse out of you and me."

Althea didn't looked amused. Not one bit.

"I'm sorry," Remus pleaded. "I didn't know it would make you that uncomfortable. Otherwise, I wouldn't have said anything."

"I like to blend in," Althea said, moving her arms to cross them over her chest now. "Did it ever occur to you that I've held the same position here for two years because I wanted to? Because I don't like to draw any attention to myself? I'm not stupid. I know exactly what sorts of things will please Greyback, but the way things are now, he doesn't take any notice of me and that's the way I like it. I'm just…here. You constantly have to watch your step, you constantly have to be on guard that you may do something that'll anger him. I can tell from your posture - you're always so tense all the time." Remus felt like inquiring about the fact that she watched him again, but she didn't even seem to take any notice of what she had just said. "But me," she went on, "I'm just a lowly epsilon. Or I was until you interfered. Greyback doesn't care what I do. As long as I come to all the meetings and don't cause any problems, I'm free to do as I wish, and I never have to think twice about it."

She turned away from him, taking a few steps across the room. "I don't want this _promotion_," she sneered. "The higher you move in this pack, the more aware you have to be of your actions, of the fact that Greyback is watching you in case he ever needs any other betas." She scoffed. "Of course, you can't tell Greyback that, because he'll accuse you of being ungrateful."

"You never said-"

"You never _asked_!" Althea cut him off. "It might have been nice if you had run this past me first before going to Greyback with it."

"I told you, I didn't know that Greyback was going to do this," Remus lied. This was bad. So far, Remus had been telling as few lies to Althea as possible. Actually, he was only _hiding_ certain things from her, not outright lying, and he almost felt like they were at the point of being completely open with each other. Almost. This was not going to help matters at all, especially when he felt like had been so close to being able to tell her the truth. Now he was lying about what he said and what Greyback did, which could all very well come back to bite him in the arse.

"Yeah," Althea said, "I may make comments about how lucky you are to have gotten your position so quickly, but the truth is, I couldn't care less what rank you or anyone else here holds. It's just a silly title, and as I said, I do just enough to blend in here. I have to act like ranks and things impress me. It's an act, Remus. An act. Surely you're quite familiar with that."

"I don't-"

Althea rolled her eyes. "Oh, don't. Don't go over that rubbish about how you have no clue what it is I'm on about, because you do. You know very well what I'm talking about. _This isn't you_, so obviously this is all an act on your part, isn't it?"

Remus didn't know what to say. He didn't know how to respond, and he felt everything he had done here was falling apart at the seams. All the time he had spent, all the carefully laid plans he had put into place were in danger of being destroyed in a matter of seconds. Everything he had done would be a waste.

"I was hoping you would confide in me on your own," Althea whispered. "After all, you said you would someday. Obviously, you don't trust me enough for that yet, but you do trust me enough to get me a promotion. Weird."

"All right!" Remus snapped. For some reason, he could feel his anger rising out of control, something that it hardly ever did. That seemed to be happening more and more the longer he was here. "I'm not loyal to Greyback! Is that what you want to hear?"

"And you think I am?" Althea yelled back, pressing a hand to her chest. "Remus, I told you, I'm only here because I have nowhere else to go. I hate Greyback! The sight of him makes me sick, he disgusts me more than anyone else I've ever met in my life-"

"Well, that makes two of us," Remus commented dryly.

Althea was quiet for a moment, her chest heaving with anger. "I hate it here," she said, getting her temper back in check. Shouting at the top of their lungs about how they hated Greyback wasn't exactly the smartest idea. When she spoke again, her voice was much lower than before. "I don't want to be here, but I don't have a choice. No one will hire a werewolf to do _anything_. I can't support myself, and I don't have anyone to help me out even a little bit. Everyone I used to know - they're all disgusted by what I am. At least I get a place to sleep and a steady supply of food here. And it's safe." Remus opened his mouth to protest, but Althea corrected, "Safe from those who hate werewolves, of course."

They were both silent for a while. Remus had simply run out of things to say. He knew his entire plan was in shambles, and nothing he could do or say now was going to save any face with Althea.

"So let's hear your story," she said. "You do have a better place to go, don't you? That much is clear from the way you talk about _home_," she said in a mocking tone, but it gave Remus a tiny bit of hope. "But yet, you chose to come here instead. Why is that?"

She knew. She didn't need Remus to tell her. She was well aware that he was a spy. She had figured him out.

"That's what I thought," Althea said. "I suspected for a while now, but…you could have just told me."

"It wasn't that easy!" Remus exclaimed. "You of all people should know that most of the werewolves here will sell their soul to the devil to move up a rank. If any of them even have any souls." He shook his head in an effort to keep his mind on the topic at hand. "Just like Talon, you could have gone running off to Greyback-"

"But I never did!" Althea interrupted. "As I've said, I suspected for a long time now, but I never said one word to Greyback. Ever. I could have easily backed up the things Talon was saying, you know. Told Greyback that you're really not all that trustworthy. Maybe the both of us would have held some weight with Greyback. If you never even realized how easily I could have ruined things for you…" She took a deep shuddering breath, trying to compose herself. "But I kept your secret, and if you thought, even for a second, that I would go to Greyback with it…you never knew me as well as you thought you did." With that, she swept from the shack, leaving Remus alone.

"Althea!" he called after her, but she was already gone, and Remus knew she wasn't coming back. That she might never talk to him ever again. He banged his head back against wall in annoyance, letting out a growl of frustration. He had only tried to get Althea a promotion, because he thought it might gain even more of her trust. Remus never imagined that it would destroy whatever relationship they'd already had.

This was definitely not working out the way he had intended.

For the first time in quite a while, Remus ate his meal alone. He almost always spent mealtimes with Althea, but she was nowhere to be seen, and Remus doubted they'd ever eat together again. He was completely alienated from the pack now, Greyback being the only one that even remotely seemed to like him, and Remus wondered how long that would last.

Remus spent the rest of the afternoon in the forest, leaning up against a tree and watching the sun move across the sky. He didn't have any idea how this would impact his time here, whether Althea would say anything to anybody or not. She wouldn't go to Greyback, Remus was certain of that, especially not now, and he wouldn't believe her if she did anyway. Remus knew he was in well enough with Greyback to discredit anything she claimed, but Merlin only knew what she could say to the other werewolves. She didn't like any of them, but perhaps she would let something slip out of anger, and that would just make things that much worse for him. But Remus wasn't really keen on finding out how much worse. Not at all, so he decided to avoid everyone for as long as possible. At least until the next meeting, when he would be forced to rejoin the others.

Unbeknownst to Remus, he would never have another meeting with the rest of the pack again.

_To be continued…_


	14. Chapter 14: The Journey

**Love Sees More 3: Greyback's Pack**

Chapter 14 - The Journey

"Lupin."

Remus jerked awake. He was still leaning up against the tree in the forest where he had sat down after he finished eating. He must have passed out from exhaustion, and now his back was screaming in pain from being pressed up against the hard trunk for so long. He leaned forward, twisting around a bit to try and relieve the cramp that had settled into his muscles.

Judging from the position of the sun in the sky, it was getting rather late; it would be getting dark soon, which meant that it was almost time for the pack's before-dinner meeting. Remus supposed that it was good that he was awoken now, because sleeping through a meeting would not please Greyback at all. Especially given the opinion that the rest of the werewolves had of Remus at the moment, he wanted to do as little to rock the boat as possible.

It took a while for Remus to get his bearings, but he finally noticed that Canin was standing over him, apparently waiting for a response.

"Sorry," Remus said, running a hand over his eyes and through his hair. "Did you want something?"

"Greyback wants to see you," Canin said. "In his shack."

Remus's heart gave an unpleasant thump. He couldn't imagine what in the world Greyback would want to see him for…unless Althea had said something to him. But no, Remus didn't want to believe that. She was angry at him, but Remus still considered her a friend. She wouldn't lower herself to that level - running off to Greyback with the information she now had. What would she hope to accomplish from that? Aside from the fact that Greyback might not believe her and get angry at her for lying, Althea had made it quite clear that she didn't care about gaining ranks. She liked to blend in, and tattling on him to Greyback would have the opposite effect.

So what could Greyback possibly want from him now? At the last meeting, Greyback had told Canin to come to his shack after lunch. Had Canin been in there for this long? Did Greyback wanting to see him now have anything to do with that? Could Greyback possibly suspect Remus of being dishonest with him? Was he perhaps arranging for Remus's departure from the pack?

Remus's mind felt overloaded with all the possibilities, so he shook his head sharply, attempting to clear it. "Thank you," he said to Canin, trying not to sound like he was scared to death. "I'll be there in a minute."

Without saying another word, Canin turned on his heel, walking away, and disappearing into the forest.

Remus turned around, looking back in the direction of the compound for any clues as to what could be going on. He saw no one. Everyone was still apparently in the woods, waiting for the time of the next meeting.

Taking a deep breath, Remus got to his feet, which felt like they were full of jelly underneath him. He clung to the tree trunk for support, attempting to calm himself. He knew he shouldn't keep Greyback waiting. When Greyback wanted to see you, he meant right this second, the hell with whatever you were doing at the moment.

Perhaps it was nothing. Maybe he just wanted to give Remus some more of the perverse praise that he had a habit of doing lately. Not that Remus wanted more of that from Greyback; it abhorred him to think that he was doing anything at all that pleased Greyback, but he would vastly prefer that to getting maimed or killed by the alpha wolf.

But standing here, waiting in fear would only anger Greyback more, so Remus forced himself to get moving. He clenched his hands into fists at his sides as he went, determined not to look like he was the least bit scared. Even though he was. Truth be told, he was terrified.

He crossed the compound on still shaking legs until he reached the bottom of the stairs that led to Greyback's shack. Remus looked back over his shoulder, at the woods where he had just come from. Once again, he thought about how utterly easy it would be for him to leave, to run for the shelter of the woods, Disapparate, and never return. Why did he always have the urge to do that whenever Greyback summoned him to his shack? Even when Remus knew he hadn't done anything wrong, the thought of stepping into that tiny little room with the alpha wolf was enough to make him crazy.

He hated being in that confined space with Greyback. Remus supposed it was partly due to the stench that followed Greyback everywhere. It was much easier to tolerate if they were out in the open, but Greyback also seemed much more intimidating inside his shack. Perhaps because it was _his_ domain, the place where no one else could go unless they were invited. Not to mention, if Greyback decided to attack him in such a confined space, Remus's chances of escape would be almost nonexistent.

This wasn't helping. Standing here, thinking about everything Greyback could do to him was only serving to make even more nervous than he already was. Remus was going to do this. He was going to remain a part of the pack until he wore out his welcome, for as long as Greyback would have him, until he was thrown out. If he left any sooner, he knew he would always wonder if he could have done more had he stayed longer.

Remus closed his eyes and took a deep breath before ascending the three small steps to the door. It stood wide open, and Greyback was inside with his back to Remus. He was leaning up against that small rickety table, the one that Remus was still waiting to collapse. Greyback was rather preoccupied with the fingernails of his right hand; he kept alternately looking at them and chewing at them fiercely like he had something stuck under them. Remus shivered.

Swallowing hard, Remus knocked lightly on the door. "You wanted to see me, sir?"

"Indeed I did," Greyback hummed, not moving from his position nor taking his eyes from his fingernails. "Come in and close the door."

Remus's heart was beating erratically, but he did as he was told. He stepped into the shack and shut the door behind him. He stood there for a long time, waiting for Greyback to speak. Remus wanted to ask what this was all about, but he didn't think he could do so without his voice shaking. Besides, Greyback liked to do things on his own time, and he hated to be rushed; if that meant keeping everyone else waiting, that was their problem.

After what seemed like forever, Greyback finally apparently decided that his fingernails were satisfactorily clean, because he turned to face Remus. Greyback looked thoroughly pleased about something, but Remus wasn't entirely sure if that was a good thing or not.

"It's time," was all Greyback said.

"Time for what, sir?" Remus suspected that Greyback loved playing these games with people. He loved hinting at things and asking questions, but he never came right out and said anything until he was absolutely ready to do so. Perhaps Greyback enjoyed it like an animal would enjoy playing with its prey before the kill.

"Surely you remember I invited you to accompany me on a job with the rest of the Death Eaters," Greyback replied. "It's tonight."

Remus was partially relieved to know that he wasn't in any trouble, but this wasn't exactly what he had been expecting either. With everything that had happened with Althea, Remus had entirely forgotten about the fact that Greyback had told him about such a mission. Not to mention, Remus had been hoping that Greyback would give him a little advance warning so that he might have time to inform Dumbledore beforehand. Somewhere in the back of his mind, however, Remus knew that he wouldn't have any time to prepare. That wasn't the way that Greyback played. If you weren't ready at the moment Greyback decided, that was also your problem.

"You were wondering why I invited Canin to see me after lunch, yes?" Greyback asked.

"It…crossed my mind."

"You weren't afraid that you were being replaced?"

Was Greyback trying to make him jealous? Either way, the answer would be the same. "No, sir," Remus said confidently. "You dislike Canin."

"Now, yes. Very much so." Greyback made a face and growled. "I dislike them all." He paused, tilting his head and looking at Remus like was prey. "You put them all to shame. Not that I'm sorry you're here. Quite the contrary. I'm very happy that you've come to us, but I am sorry that I thought so highly of the rest of them at one time."

Remus wondered if this mission with the rest of the Death Eaters would force him to reveal where his true loyalties lay. It certainly seemed like a very real possibility to Remus, depending on what would be required of him. If it did come to that, Remus was very curious how Greyback would feel about the rest of the pack. After all, Greyback hadn't had a problem with the rest of the werewolves before Remus had showed up. Remus suspected that Greyback would easily appoint Canin as his second-in-command and pretend that the entire past two months had never even happened. That actually sounded like a very good idea to Remus - pretending like this had never happened - and quite possibly the only thing that he had in common with the savage werewolf.

Greyback shook his head quite suddenly, almost like he realized he had gotten off track. "Anyway, since we'll both be gone for the dinner meeting tonight, I asked Canin if he would oversee it and keep an eye on things until we return." Greyback grimaced. "I know. He's nothing but a sick pup who can't think for himself, but he can handle that much. I'm sure of it. I wouldn't trust him with much more than that, but one meeting…it'll be fine."

"I think so, too, sir." If Greyback liked anything, it was being told he was right. "He isn't the sharpest tool in the shed, but he is loyal to you. Sometimes he gets blinded by that, but I think he can hold the roof down for one night."

Greyback hummed grimly. "But as I was saying, I'm very pleased that you've joined us." He approached Remus, standing just mere inches from him, and Remus strained not to cringe away from the stench. "That's why I've asked you to join me tonight. I wouldn't trust any of the others with this. Just you."

"And I'm honored, sir."

Greyback grinned, his yellow pointy teeth sending shivers down Remus's spine. Not to mention Greyback's breath. In this close proximity, especially indoors, it was just awful. Remus wanted nothing more than to give him a toothbrush and some toothpaste.

"As always," Greyback continued, completely obvious to Remus's discomfort, "I expect you to do as I say without hesitation. We're going with a bunch of other Death Eaters, but we're nothing but a bunch of animals to them, and you do not answer to them. You answer to me. Is that clear?"

Remus nodded. "Yes, sir."

"They're hesitant about me bringing any outside parties into this," Greyback said. "They don't trust my judgment as it is, so don't do anything to embarrass me. Not that I care what they think of me, because talk about a bunch of mindless zombies going along with their master, because they don't have a brain of their own. I go along for the prey, nothing more. If I bring in someone who isn't absolutely trustworthy, I risk upsetting the Dark Lord, and I risk losing the victims that he offers to me. If you do anything to jeopardize that…I will be very angry," Greyback finished with a growl.

Remus felt the insane urge to grin. After all, losing Greyback his position as a Death Eater wouldn't be such a bad thing; it might save a lot of innocent victims, but he couldn't let Greyback know that. Remus pressed his lips together in an attempt to contain the humor that he found in the situation. "I wouldn't dream of it, sir."

"I know you wouldn't," Greyback replied. "That's why I'm entrusting you with this." At long last, Greyback stepped away from Remus, which he was grateful for. Greyback started pacing around the small shack before he continued speaking again. "The place where we're going tonight…I imagine you're very familiar with it." Greyback watched Remus for a while, trying to gauge his reaction.

Remus had suspected that they might be going someplace from his past. After all, Greyback had made a point over the fact that this would be a good way for Remus to renounce his allegiance to Dumbledore. Of course there would be people there who would recognize him. Remus didn't suspect anything less from Greyback, so he didn't react, waiting for Greyback to speak again.

For a moment, Greyback even looked slightly amused by it all. "I don't care even if you are," Greyback went on. "If you see anyone you recognize, all the more reason to go out of your way to display where your loyalty now lies." His pacing ceased and he stood in front of Remus once more, looking down his nose at him. He pressed one clawed finger to the underside of Remus's chin. Greyback leaned in close, his face just inches away from Remus's, and he inhaled deeply, sniffing him.

Remus hated when he did that. He hated when Greyback got even remotely close to him, let alone touched him, but smelling him was something else altogether. It made him feel like a piece of meat, like Greyback was preparing to devour him. And perhaps he was.

"You smell anxious," Greyback growled.

Half the time, Remus liked to think that Greyback was completely full of it when he claimed he could smell emotions on people, but the other half, he wasn't so sure. After all, if Greyback truly could identify emotions that easily, he would have killed Remus already for his deceit. But it was times like this when Greyback hit the nail on the head that made Remus wonder if Greyback really knew what was going on after all. If he was playing along with Remus because it amused him, like a cat playing with a mouse.

"I am, sir," Remus said, trying not to let his voice shake. "Anxious to see how they'll react when they see me standing next to you." Remus threw his head back and looked Greyback directly in the eye.

Greyback smirked and there was a low rumbling sound in his chest, almost like a purr. "Anxious to show them exactly where their mistreatment of you has gotten them, hm? With one less follower, because you're my pup now. Isn't that right?"

Remus swallowed hard. "Completely, sir."

"Then you have nothing to fear." He released Remus and stepped around him, reaching for the door of the shack.

Remus used the opportunity to look away from the savage werewolf, pressing his eyes closed and taking a deep shuddering breath. Not only for the fresh air the now open door provided, but to try and regain some semblance of control. Whenever Greyback touched him, Remus got the intense urge to rip his own skin off. He didn't know what it was. Perhaps it was just the filth that clung to every inch of him, or maybe it was the thought of every single person Greyback had ever ripped apart with those clawed fingernails. Remus wasn't even sure, but it made him feel just as dirty, just as evil.

Not to mention, when Greyback went on about Remus's loyalties, he wanted nothing more than to set him straight. To scream that he was and always would be loyal to Dumbledore, and nothing Greyback could ever say or do would change that. As horrible as the moment would be when he was found out, Remus prayed for it to come. He would still do everything in his power to put it off, to hold on to this lie for as long as possible, but if he was honest with himself, he wanted nothing more than for the truth to be revealed. To finally be able to return home and to make it clear to everyone that he wasn't a traitor.

"Let us be on our way," Greyback said cheerily, pulling Remus from his thoughts.

Trying his best to push his feelings away, Remus clenched his fists and turned to exit the shack. Greyback followed, pulling the door shut behind them.

"I'll need you to Apparate us there," Greyback said as he descended the stairs.

Remus raised an eyebrow.

"I know," Greyback muttered, rolling his eyes. "I despise magic, but sometimes it's necessary. Besides, this saves me from having to have one of the other Death Eaters come and _pick me up_ like I'm some child. God, how humiliating. All the while, they whine about having to come here at all, about having to _fetch_ someone so _beneath_ them, and about having to _touch_ me." Greyback snorted derisively. "Well, believe me, the feeling's mutual. I'd like nothing more than to tear their fingers off any time they lay one on me."

Remus didn't exactly blame them for not wanting to touch Greyback, but he tried not to let his mind go there. He didn't need to be distracted again. He simply just started walking for the shelter of the trees.

"Whoever said you couldn't Apparate inside the compound?" Greyback asked curiously, following along behind him.

"Common knowledge," Remus answered, glancing back over his shoulder. "Obviously the place would have had anti-Apparition wards all over the place at one time. Unless you know for a fact they've been removed, it's best not to attempt Apparition inside the boundaries."

Greyback muttered indistinctly for a moment. "I've been trying to get one of the Death Eaters and come here and get rid of them, because I want no traces of magic around here if I can help it. Of course, I'm not deemed _important_ enough for any of them to spare a moment to do so." They walked in silence for a while, and then Greyback asked, "Could you do it?"

"Now without a wand. I left mine behind when I came here."

"Smart pup. I wouldn't have allowed you to have one here anyway, but…it's a pity. The fewer traces of magic here, the better in my opinion."

When they reached the tree line, Remus turned to face Greyback. "Sir?" he asked. "You haven't told me where we're going."

"Oh, yes," Greyback chuckled. "We're going to Knockturn Alley." He grinned at Remus's expression. "You look surprised."

Remus frowned. "Not exactly the place I was expecting, especially if we're supposed to be running into people that I know."

"Oh, it won't be our final destination this evening," Greyback corrected, "but it is our first stop. We need to _pick up_ the other Death Eaters." He threw his head back and laughed, although Remus didn't see what was so funny.

Remus merely held out his arm for Greyback to take. He tried not to shudder when he felt Greyback's sharp claws poking through his sleeve and into his skin. He tried not to think about the fact that he might be feeling those same talons tearing into his flesh very soon if he wasn't careful. Instead, Remus shut his eyes tightly and focused on their destination.

Apparating with Greyback was horrible. If Remus thought his stench was unbearable while standing next to him, it was nothing compared to being pressed in upon from all sides with the great hulking werewolf next to him. It even felt like the very smell was stronger, like the pressure from Apparition had increased it tenfold and was pressing it unbearably into his lungs. Remus had never been that fond of Apparition to begin with. After all, who was? But he had never been more grateful that a trip was over in his life.

"My god," Greyback growled when they caught their balance, "how I hate that." He shook almost like a dog, like he was trying to rid himself of any traces of magic the trip might have left upon him. "You wizards and your silly modes of transportation. Haven't you ever heard of walking?"

Remus smirked. "I hate it, too, sir." Perhaps the most truthful words he had ever spoken to Greyback.

They had appeared at the very end of Knockturn Alley, just around the corner from Diagon Alley. Greyback wasted no time in hurrying down the alley known for the Dark Arts, while Remus glanced back in the direction of the less notorious one. It always brought back so many memories of shopping for school with the rest of the Marauders, of his father reading off the list of everything he needed for the new term. Sighing wistfully, Remus hurried to catch up with Greyback, not wanting it to be too obvious that his heart wasn't in this. That he had never walked down Knockturn Alley a day in his life. Except for that time when he was thirteen and the other Marauders had dragged him along out of curiosity. Remus had hoped that he would never have to return.

The place was completely deserted. Of course, with the war raging on, most people probably wouldn't be caught dead skulking around here. Some of the shops looked like they had closed up, but Remus wondered if that was really true, or if it was simply a front so that they could continue to exchange goods with more privacy.

Greyback led them along until they came to Borgin and Burkes, a shop that Remus was familiar with for two reasons. Not only was it well known in the wizarding world for selling dark artifacts, but it was one that Remus distinctly remembered Sirius and James pressing their noses up against the window of during their little excursion. Almost exactly twenty-three years before, Remus had stood in this very spot with Peter next to him, trying to tear the other two Marauders away this horrific place. Never in a million years did Remus ever imagine that he'd be back here with the most savage werewolf in the world. It all seemed so strange to him, the path his life had taken.

Greyback forced open the door of the shop, causing the little bell above it to ring, and waking Remus from his reverie. He felt like shaking himself. This was not a good time to be daydreaming about the past, not when there was so much going on. Remus needed to be on his guard, because Merlin only knew what the evening had in store for him.

It wasn't until they entered the shop that Remus got a pretty good idea. Oh, he'd known beforehand that they were going to be meeting up with Death Eaters, but somehow, that didn't seem real to him at all, that he'd be going on a mission with them. The very idea still seemed absurd to him. After all, he'd dedicated his life to fighting the Dark Arts. How in the world did he ever end up here?

But Borgin and Burkes was full of them, all standing around in their black robes, waiting for everyone to join them. There were a few that Remus had never seen before, but he did recognize most of them. Unfortunately, they recognized him as well, and they were all too familiar with whose side he had been on not that long ago. The side he was still on, he almost had to remind himself.

Bellatrix Lestrange was the first to step forward, going wide-eyed at the sight of Remus. "What in the hell is _he_ doing here?" she demanded, pointing her wand in Remus's direction, but staring daggers at Greyback.

"_I_ brought him!" Greyback snapped. He advanced upon her, and Remus almost thought he was about to attack her. If there was one thing Greyback hated, it was being questioned.

Bellatrix laughed, a cruel derisive sound. "What in the world for?! In case you didn't know, he was working with _them_ not very long ago. Just last June, he fought with them at the Ministry of Magic!" She threw Remus a sideways glance, almost like he wasn't worth looking at directly. "He probably still _is_ working with them."

Remus felt like defending himself, but he didn't know if he was supposed to or not. Greyback had told him before they had come he was the only one Remus should answer to. He wasn't sure if that included standing up for himself or not, but he didn't want to do anything to anger Greyback. If he was supposed to say something, Greyback would tell him to. Besides, Greyback seemed to be more than capable of handling the situation.

"He isn't!" Greyback barked. "He came to me, he's been living with my pack for many months now. He's pledged his loyalty to me. He's one of my pups now, and that's all you need to know."

"Loyalty!" Bellatrix sneered. "As if your lot know anything at all about _loyalty_!"

Greyback bared his teeth, letting out a guttural growl. "By all means, take it up with the Dark Lord if it'll make you feel better! Run along and tell him that I've been doing exactly what it is he wants me to do, which is gather followers. I'm sure he'll be very happy that you wasted his time with such petty complaints, just because the ones I'm finding don't exactly measure up to your standards."

Bellatrix's face turned slightly red. "He never said you could bring whatever _followers_ you find with us on missions."

"That's what I told him," said Amycus Carrow from among the crowd, "when I informed him about the mission. He seemed intent on bringing Lupin regardless."

"And as I said, go and tattle on me to the Dark Lord if you want!" Greyback yelled. "He can come and tell me himself if he has a problem with it."

Bellatrix snorted and rolled her eyes. "Like he would ever address you creatures directly. I don't know why we even have to."

"Then that's his problem!" Greyback roared. His shoulders heaved for a moment, but then he seemed to get his temper under control. He retreated from the group a bit and laid a palm against one of the display cases, leaning against it. "So, should we wait here while you go and complain to the Dark Lord and delay the mission he entrusted us with? Or should we go?"

In the very back of the shop, Remus could see Mr. Borgin eyeing Greyback suspiciously, especially once he had chosen to lean up against one of the displays. Borgin looked caught somewhere in between anger and fear, almost like he wanted to tell Greyback to get the hell off his things, but too afraid of retribution to do so.

The Death Eaters stood around quietly for quite a while, glancing uncomfortably between each other as if someone else might have the answer. Obviously, none of them were happy with the fact that Greyback had seen fit to include Remus in this, but no one wanted to go running to Voldemort to see what he had to say about it either. Remus was sure that Voldemort would take issue with it, but probably not enough to hold up the entire mission while they checked with him first. From what Remus could tell, this was very important, and Voldemort would surely be angry at anyone who hindered it, no matter who was going.

When still no one said anything, Greyback stepped forward once more. "Let him come with us. He'll show you and them once and for all where his loyalties lie. That's why I'm bringing him, so there will never be any question again about whose side he's on."

Bellatrix huffed. She still wasn't very happy with any of this, but she wasn't exactly keen on being responsible for interrupting this mission either. She raised her wand in Remus's direction once more. "If he does _anything_ he shouldn't," she warned Greyback, "_you're_ going to take full responsibility for it."

Greyback grinned. Remus was standing just behind him and to the side, but he could still see more of the savage werewolf's teeth from his position than he would have wanted to.

"That's the only way I want it," Greyback hummed.

"He's going to kill the both of you," Bellatrix said, shaking her head, "but it's your funeral." She turned on her heel and said, "Let's go then."

For the first time, Remus really began to wonder why they had chosen to meet in Borgin and Burkes. After all, wouldn't someplace closer to their final destination be more appropriate? Unless they were planning on attacking Diagon Alley, which Remus severely doubted. Since it was the traditional place to buy school supplies, it wouldn't be very busy at this time of year. An attack on Diagon Alley would have been much more fruitful to them in the summer, just before school started.

But then Remus realized that Bellatrix had reached for the door of a large black cabinet just in front of where Greyback was standing. She pulled the door open and motioned inside with her other hand. "Who would like to go first?" she asked.

Remus's heart squirmed uncomfortably. He knew exactly what it was and what it could do. They could be going anywhere in the world, and Remus wouldn't know until he got there, until he was stuck right in the middle of a Death Eater attack. He didn't like this at all.

"Ladies first," Amycus said, gesturing for Bellatrix to go on ahead.

Bellatrix threw one last look over her shoulder at both Greyback and Remus. She narrowed her eyes before she stepped into the cabinet and pulled the door closed behind her.

Amycus stepped forward next, pulling the door of the cabinet open, which was now empty. He motioned for his sister, Alecto to go on next, which she did. One by one, the Death Eaters stepped into the Vanishing Cabinet, being automatically transported to wherever their destination could be.

As the crowd dwindled, Remus's heart started pounding louder and louder. He almost began to fear that Greyback would be able to hear it. When they were the last two left, Greyback turned and motioned for Remus to take his turn in the cabinet.

"Go on," he said. "I'll be right behind you."

Remus's chest felt so tight that he feared it might explode. He almost had the sudden urge to run from the shop and Disapparate, to hell with the mission and whatever good he could do for their side. This was quickly becoming too much for Remus, and he felt like he was about to get in over his head. But he steeled his courage and forced himself to step forward, passing Greyback and climbing into the cabinet.

Greyback immediately closed the door behind him, consuming Remus in darkness, and then an odd feeling came over him. It was a strange cross between using a Portkey and Apparating - he felt a jolt somewhere around his middle and a slight squeezing sensation, but then it was gone. The door of the cabinet reopened a moment later, and when Remus stepped out, he was indeed in a completely different location. One with a high vaulted ceiling and tall windows. Remus knew exactly where they were.

The rest of the Death Eaters looked at him apprehensively, but no one said a word. Not until Greyback himself came through the cabinet.

"You lot _really_ need to come up with better ways to travel," Greyback complained, shaking himself like a dog again, his grey and matted hair flying out around him.

"We're here!" Bellatrix exclaimed, and Remus almost expected to squeal. "Well done, Draco."

Remus blinked. The room they were in was so crowded. Not only was it full of Death Eaters, but it was full of everything else one could imagine. There were towers of books, all kinds of different sized cabinets, various articles of clothing, vials of potions in every color of the rainbow, as well as an assortment of weapons and many magical items. What Remus hadn't noticed in all the chaos, however, was the blond-haired boy standing off to the side. A boy who had once been his student. For the first time, their eyes met, each seeming to search the other's questioningly, but neither one of them said anything.

"Do let us be on our way," Bellatrix said, placing a hand on the back of Draco's neck and steering him through the twisting piles of discarded objects. The rest of the Death Eaters followed, once again leaving only Remus and Greyback behind.

Remus didn't want to do this. For the first time, he was seriously beginning to regret ever getting into that cabinet. Even now, he looked back at the cabinet wistfully, wanting to crawl right back through it to Borgin and Burkes, as uncomfortable as that shop had made him in the first place.

"Don't lose yourself, Remus," Greyback said quietly. "Come." Greyback started picking his way through the debris, leaving Remus alone.

He momentarily thought about turning right around and leaving, but he didn't, and he wasn't sure why. Something felt like it was holding him there, urging him forward. He was scared to death of what was in store for him, but something was making him stay. Something that was much more important than himself.

Remus did as he was told. In the end, he would be glad he did, but he already felt like he had lost himself.

_To be continued…_


End file.
